Operation GEAR: The Gardener of Gratitude
by The Great Butler
Summary: A legendary adventurer and archeologist is murdered, leaving his grandson to inherit a puzzle box that can lead to the greatest treasure in history, a city made entirely of gold. Invited to help solve the riddle of the Golden City, he is drawn into a conflict between multiple parties for the immense power sleeping there that soon descends into all-out civil war.
1. Prologue

Here's something I honestly didn't think I would get around to anytime soon. This is a remake of an old story I wrote a little under ten years ago. Back then it served as a companion piece to my then-current series. It also could serve as an early look at what would come into being with Operation GEAR, and it's under that context that I've decided to remake it. This version will follow a similar rough plot to the original, if you have read it, but will feature a number of fairly significant changes in order to make it act better as a prelude to the Operation GEAR stories. So for that reason, this remake is effectively the "fourth" part of the Operation GEAR trilogy, taking place before any of the other three. Though it contains references to both events taking place prior to and after this story, these references are merely to provide context. The story is itself fully stand-alone.

This will not deal with any particularly intense themes, though there will be bouts of intense violence and characters will die.

-:-

 **Operation GEAR: The Gardener of Gratitude**

 **PROLOGUE**

-:-

Sutter Chiaki, professor of history and archeology at the Rustboro School in its namesake city, was a man of simple tastes, wiling away the night working on a desk crammed with papers surrounded by those pleasures.. A cup of Komala Coffee, prepared black with the noticeable aroma of a strong roast. The soft, almost candle-like light of his antique desk lamp. His favorite old-fashioned dip pen and its accompanying inkwell. Indeed, his environment as he worked on his papers was exactly the way he preferred it, as if every stray scrap of paper had been purposefully laid out to aid the professor's work.

He put the finishing touches on the paper he was writing as a steady rainfall pelted the window behind his desk, providing some much-appreciated background noise. Once he was done, he quickly looked the document over and then placed it into the top drawer of his desk. His work for the night complete, he stood and walked over to a nearby rack, on which his coat and hat were hung.

It was at that point that the sound of his office's doorbell broke that peaceful quiet. A fateful chime that, far from Sutter's wildest imaginings, would prove to change history.

"It's open," he called out to the person on the other side of the door. "Come in."

Evidently, the person who walked in was not the one Sutter was expecting. He'd finished putting on his dark blue coat and had just set his black top hat over his messy white hair, but when he lay eyes on his visitor, he returned the hat to its hook and adjusted his glasses.

"Can I help you?" he asked, not trying to hide the suspicion in his voice. "Who are you?"

"I am merely someone who is interested in a bit of your past work, Mister Chiaki," the man replied. Every part of his face was hidden beneath a gray, cylindrical helmet, save for his mouth, and he stood with his hands planted firmly in the gold-lined pockets of his darker gray suit. "There are a few questions I would like to ask you."

"I must say I'm not sure what part of my work interests a man like you who visits dressed like a Dusknoir," Sutter said, "but I suppose I can make a moment for a few questions, if you're quick about them."

If Sutter was honest with himself, he just wanted the man to leave. His vaguely wraith-like garb and evasive response to a simple question about his identity left Sutter uncomfortable with his presence. But the school was also well secured, and Sutter's office was no exception. He calmly walked back to his desk, pretending that it was to retrieve a cloth and his coffee cup. Outside of the man's sight, he placed the cup back down on top of a small button, its weight more than enough to push the button down. He then turned around to address the strange visitor again.

"So what part of my work has brought you here tonight?" he asked while wiping his glasses with the cloth.

"Your work on finding the Golden City."

As soon as the man's answer hit his ears, Sutter paused. He put his glasses back on and lowered the volume of his voice. "Nothing but a legend. I'm only one of many men throughout history who have searched for it. There's nothing to be found."

"Now see, Mister Chiaki, lying is unbecoming for an academic like you." The man withdrew his hands and spread his arms wide. "I know you found it. I've studied the history of La Ciudad Dorada my entire life… I know when you came to the kingdom, you found the Golden City. And furthermore, I know you're the one who has the map to find it again."

"If I had found it," Sutter countered, "don't you think I would have publicized such a historic discovery?"

"I think you were aware of the incredible power that sleeps in that place," the man replied, putting his hands back in his pockets. "Let me guess, you were trying to keep it away from people who might misuse it? Noble, but misguided…"

"I think you've wasted enough of my time," Sutter shot back. He glanced down at his watch and sighed. "Please, take my advice and leave."

" _You_ take _my_ advice. Give me the map and I'll walk out of here without a complaint."

"I don't have your map."

"So you'll lie. Lie all the way to the very end… how unfortunate."

In a flash, the man's hand exited his pocket with a strange, clockwork Poké Ball firmly in his grasp. He swiftly opened it, freeing a Dragonite wearing a glowing collar from the sphere. As soon as she materialized, the beast bellowed and lunged toward Sutter.

"Horn Drill!" Dragonite's owner commanded.

Even though he was incredibly healthy and mobile for a man of his advanced age, the Dragonite was far too close and her lunge far too swift for him to have a hope of escape. The beast dove upon the man, driving her rotating horn into his chest as a searing pain shot through Sutter's body. The dragon's attack missed his heart, but had sunk deep into his chest before she wrenched it free with a gush of blood. He screamed as he fell back against his desk, a great volume of blood splashing onto the floor and across his clothes. The only thing he could manage was grab at his desk and drag a picture frame off it as his life ebbed away and his body crumpled limply to the ground.

At that exact moment, a bespectacled woman wearing a suit appeared in the doorway with several security guards. "Professor, we got the al-"

When she saw her boss bleeding out on the floor against his desk, Sutter's secretary shrieked. The guards pushed past her and surrounded his killer, wasting no time in deploying their own Pokémon to further close off his path to the exit.

Surveying the group facing him, the murderer grunted to himself. There were a pair of Growlithe and a Manectric, which he knew he could easily defeat with Dragonite, but one of the guards happened to have a Glalie. _"Dealing with an Ice-type on top of the others… not worth it. I'll have to look for the map another time…"_

Resigning himself to the failure of his mission, the man vaulted over Sutter's desk, knocking the lamp to the ground with a crash as bloodstained papers were strewn about. His Dragonite lifted herself into the air and fired a stream of bubbles from her mouth at the window, smashing it to pieces. The murderer then jumped onto her back as the guard's Glalie launched an Ice Beam at the duo, only for his mount to dive ahead of it and fly out into the rain before they could be stopped. Glalie gave chase and tried again to shoot them down, but his aim was off and the second Ice Beam sailed harmlessly off into the sky.

"How persistent," the man fumed as he prompted Dragonite to turn around and face Glalie. "Dragonite, Bubble Beam!"

The collar around Dragonite's neck glowed brighter as she drew in a deep breath, then exhaled another flood of bubbles. Drawing power from the driving rainfall, they buffeted Glalie with relentless force. By the time Glalie shook off the attack, the killer and his Dragonite had vanished into the storm.

Sutter's secretary, meanwhile, rushed to her boss's side as his life rapidly slipped away. "Professor…" she sobbed, tears running down her face. "Professor, why?"

"T-T…" It took every ounce of Sutter's remaining energy to speak. "Tell Matt… pr-protect… the b-box…"

That request proved to be the last words the great archeologist Sutter Chiaki would ever speak. The last thing he saw before he slipped from this life was the photograph he pulled from his desk - a picture of himself alongside a blond-haired boy with a face somewhat similar to his own.

-:-

"Ah!"

Several years later, the boy from Sutter's photograph - having since grown into a tall but very thin young man - snapped awake on the bed in his train cabin. He stared up at the ceiling as he caught his breath, and tried to focus on the rhythmic sounds of the train's wheels on the tracks as a way of calming himself.

Suddenly, the door of his cabin slid open, and he had no choice but to sit up.

"Matt, good morning!" the young woman who entered greeted him. Her red hair contrasted sharply with the green t-shirt she wore. Though her greeting was a cheerful one, her attitude changed when she saw how plainly troubled he looked. "What's wrong?"

"It would be nice to be able to go a week without dreaming of when I saw my grandfather lying in a pool of his own blood," Matt replied, brushing away the hair that hung over his right eye away for a moment. "That scene just… still haunts me. I think that's why I'm doing this. I need closure."

"Do you really think doing this is going to find who killed him?" Matt ignored Cassy's question, and as he walked past her, she understood not to pursue it. "Think you'll be able to finish what he started?"

"I don't know," he answered blandly. "That note sounds like a lot of things more important than a treasure hunt are going on."

"It sounded to me like finding the Golden City is key to all of it," Cassy suggested in response.

Without saying anything, Matt went to the hook on the wall where he had his coat and messenger bag hanging. He opened the bag and withdrew a piece of parchment, which he began to read from.

 _"To Matt Chiaki, greetings. My name is Fernando, eighth Count of the royal family of La Ciudad Dorada. I write to you as I am aware of your grandfather, Sutter Chiaki, and his fascinating work in our kingdom. This may be very late, but please accept my condolences on behalf of the entire royal family for his unfortunate death. His work is recognized even today in our land._

 _More to the point of why I have written to you with such urgency, our kingdom is facing a threat unlike anything we have faced any time in our recent history. You may not be able to fully understand right now, but our history is paramount to ensuring the continued security of our land. We must find the Golden City to ensure our survival, and that is why I am writing to you. I have researched Sutter's time in our kingdom, and I have come to understand that even though he did not find the Golden City, he obtained an item that is key to locating it. To be specific, a puzzle box. Since his death, I understand you have inherited much from him, and as his heir I am sure that includes the aforementioned puzzle box. Please, I request that you come to La Ciudad Dorada at your earliest convenience, and bring the box with you. Together, we must finish what your grandfather started. It is the only way we can ensure that La Ciudad Dorada survives."_

By the time Matt finished reading the letter, Cassy had made her way to the cabin window and was looking out of it.

"I guess I can see your point," he said. He put the letter down and reached back into his bag, retrieving a golden cube with ornate patterns carved into each of its sides. Each design prominently featured seven dots, arranged into one of three patterns; one resembling the letter 'H', one a wide cross, and one a hexagonal shape. The box glittered in the light of the morning sun as Matt examined it. "My grandfather always told me that this puzzle box was extremely important to one of his most meaningful expeditions, but I never thought I'd be holding it in my hands and heading off to follow his footsteps like this."

"Matt, come here!" Cassy exclaimed. "Come over here and look at this!"

Matt followed Cassy's urging and joined her at the window after putting away the puzzle box. Not terribly far off they could see a city, its buildings constructed from stone and packed closely together. Numerous towers dotted the city's outer rim, and Matt and Cassy could see the same glowing blue lights on them that were on the train's locomotive. Those same lights could also be seen on top of some of the buildings in the city proper. However, it was the castle on the far end of the town that most commanded their attention. It was a huge, stark white palace that dominated its surroundings, its appearance enhanced by the intricate stained glass windows on it.

"So that's it…" Matt said in awe. "The kingdom of La Ciudad Dorada… it's even more impressive than I expected it would be. I see why my grandfather spoke so highly of this place…"

 **END of PROLOGUE**


	2. The Edge of History

**CHAPTER 1:** The Edge of History

-:-

La Ciudad Dorada was a community built in the center of a vast island region located in the southern sea. Most of the region's settlements were on its coasts, leaving the inland kingdom to anchor its realm in the interior largely isolated from the outside world. Much of La Ciudad Dorada's immediate surroundings were barren desert, with the settlement itself situated in a fairly mountainous area. As a result, journeys into the city were a grueling ordeal for any would-be travellers, leaving passage on foot to be considered an unwise proposition at best. The progress of time had done little to ease the difficulty of travel via roads and routes, with the only real means of convenient access from the outside world to the kingdom being the railroad Matt and Cassy arrived on.

"Last stop, La Ciudad Dorada! Last stop!"

The conductor's announcement beckoned the train's passengers, Matt and Cassy among them, to file off onto the platform. It was much busier than Matt had anticipated; he'd boarded the train early and mostly kept to his cabin during the trip, so he had little idea just how many people were interested in visiting the remote kingdom. As he and Cassy worked their way through the crowd of tourists - both human and Pokémon - she kept reading from a travel brochure she'd picked up. Her enthusiasm left her unfocused on the crowds around her.

"Come to Dorada Coliseum and partake in a traditional Alliance Battle," she recited from the paper. "An Alliance Battle is between two three-person tag teams, each member entering only one Pokémon. First created as an exhibition fought between knights for the entertainment of the royal family, this tradition of showing gratitude for one's allies has become a popular destination for visitors to La Ciudad Dorada." Turning up to Matt with a shine in her eyes, Cassy said, "We need to do that! Swellow and your Aggron would make great partners."

"I'm sure Tony appreciates the praise, but remember, we're here for work." Matt rebutted, focusing his attention more towards navigating through the train station. "We can sightsee later."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Cassy replied, dismissively waving her hand before pointing at another page in the brochure. "How about this, then? 'A must-see destination for all visitors is Dorada Theatre, the center of the arts in the kingdom. Under the guidance of its patron, Count Fernando VIII, Dorada Theatre currently hosts performances paying tribute to the rich history of La Ciudad Dorada. Even newcomers to the kingdom will be able to learn much about its past and traditions by attending a show.' Sounds like something that would help us out, don't you think?"

"Perhaps you're right on that," Matt acknowledged, "but it's probably best if we meet with Fernando first. I don't think we should keep him waiting…"

Matt and Cassy exited the station through an archway covered in flowers. The solid stone under their feet gave way to a pathway broken up by blades of grass growing through it, leading into the city proper.

"Whew…" Matt took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his forehead with it. He thought about how the people around at the station were dressed and sighed again. "I should've worn something lighter."

"The city of La Ciudad Dorada is known to for its sweltering weather, characterized by surprisingly humid air in spite of the surrounding desert," Cassy read from the brochure. "While may seem harsh to outsiders, its citizens have grown to coexist with this climate, and integrate it into the character and traditions of the city."

"I get it, I should have done my homework," Matt said with a self-deprecating laugh, scratching the back of his head.

"Seems like I have to tell you that a lot," Cassy sarcastically added before returning to the brochure. "This sentiment, the feeling of gratitude for nature and the coexistence with it, can also be seen in the ways the city has been designed to exist as one with nature. The city's industries have been constructed using the unique properties of Arcane Science to avoid pollution."

Cassy folded up the brochure and looked around. The buildings nearby were constructed in close relation with the trees around them. Some were even built around said trees, using them as a design element. Iron structures, particularly water wells and aqueducts to carry their bounty, laced carefully around both the buildings and trees, clearly laid out in such a way that they avoided fouling either. The blue lights were everywhere, too.

"Not that you couldn't tell just by looking around," she observed. The sound of children chattering reached her ears, drawing her attention over to one house nearby, where a mother was pumping water with her three kids around her. Alongside them was a Skiddo nipping at the grass around the family's well. The sight made Cassy smile.

"That's where we have to go." Matt pointed up to the opulent castle towering over the rest of the city. "We better get on our way. I don't think that time is on our side right now."

-:-

Some time later, Matt and Cassy emerged from the narrow street they had been on into a spacious plaza. Numerous vendors had stands set up all around them, selling food, souvenirs and more. While Matt looked around and thought about whether anything he saw interested him, Cassy returned to the brochure.

"The plaza outside of Lingote Palace houses the city's main marketplace," she read. "Tourists may taste the many varieties of berries grown in the city's rich soil, taste dishes from its distinctive cuisine, or purchase items crafted by its artisans. This is truly a must-see location that all visitors to La Ciudad Dorada should make a part of their travels."

"I'd like to go and see everything, but we don't have time to waste," Matt said, wiping his forehead again.

"If you say so. It says the way to access Lingote Palace is there." Cassy pointed to a steep hill on the other side of the plaza, which had a number of open-air elevators running up its side. Once again reading from the paper, Cassy said, "Lingote Palace is built on the Sacred Hill overlooking the rest of La Ciudad Dorada. To reach the palace, take the elevators built onto the side of the hill."

Following the advice of the brochure, Matt and Cassy walked across the plaza to one of the open elevators. Cassy boarded first, and she was the one to press the button that sent the lift on its ascent. While they waited, Cassy returned to the brochure once again as a way of breaking up the silence.

"In addition to the opulence of Lingote Palace, visitors to La Ciudad Dorada should make sure to experience the panorama from the top of the Sacred Hill. It is said that the ancient kingdom that once stood on this land extended from the Sacred Hill all the way to the mountains that can be seen from its peak. Additionally, the site is famous for its spectacular view of the sunset and sunrise when the weather is clear."

"I can already see what they're talking about!" Matt exclaimed. He was standing at the elevator's guardrail, looking out over the city while shielding his eyes with his hand. Even though they hadn't yet reached the top of the hill, he could see over the buildings to the desert landscape beyond, the sands glittering in the blazing sun. Beyond that, mountains spread out across the horizon, reaching far enough into the sky that snow could be seen on some of their peaks.

"Amazing…" Cassy uttered in awe after joining Matt at the rail. "If the kingdom really reached from here all the way to those mountains, it must have been incredible…"

"It's a shame it fell," Matt added. "I wish we could have seen it at its peak. Or at least I wish it lasted long enough for my grandfather to see it. If what's here now is really as threatened like Fernando made it sound in his letter, we'll have our work cut out for us, but we have to do something to save it."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Cassy replied.

Matt and Cassy couldn't look away from the view of the vast landscape spreading out before them. As the elevator went further up the hill, their perspective kept changing, giving them an increasingly clear overlook of the entire territory. They were so caught up in the view that when the elevator reached the end of its track, they were both thrown off balance and had to grip the rail when it stopped. Beyond the startling stop, both found their breaths similarly taken away by the sight that greeted them when they turned around.

Lingote Palace, a massive castle built from white marble accentuated with rainbow-colored stained glass, stood before them. All around the gleaming palace, the rest of the hill was covered in a seemingly endless sea of flowers, broken up only by wrought iron arches shaping a dirt path between the elevators and the palace.

"What a lovely garden," Matt commented as he and Cassy started their way down the path, surveying the flowers and the Pokémon living amongst them. There were a number of Combee flitting from blossom to blossom, collecting honey while a Wobbuffet with red lips watched them. Two Chatot sat on a portion of the rail surrounding the garden and preened their feathers.

"Ah, look at that," Cassy said, pointing to a place in the flowers where the tails of three Sentret could be seen, giving away where their owners were. She gasped in surprise immediately afterward when a pair of Chingling floated overhead and landed in the garden, chiming happily all the while.

The two were so caught up in taking in the sights that they didn't notice when they approached an iron bench where two others were already sitting. Both were young women of roughly Matt and Cassy's age, though neither had much else apparent in common between themselves, Matt or Cassy.

"Excuse me, are you here for the tour?" one of them, who wore a plain white coat with a furred collar and had her brown hair tied into three buns, asked Matt and Cassy.

Cassy scowled at the interruption, but she still stopped walking when Matt did, and he didn't notice her expression.

"I guess so," Matt answered, before pausing and meekly adding, "well, not really. I don't know? Technically?"

"You missed the cutoff for the most recent tour's start, unfortunately," the woman informed them. Gesturing to the other young woman, who was still sitting and reading a book, she added, "The two of us just got here and got turned away as well, so we're waiting for the next one."

"Yeah, that's not how this is going to happen," Cassy interjected. "Matt, give me the letter."

Without thinking about it, Matt reached into his bag, retrieved the letter from Fernando and handed it over to Cassy. "What are you going to do?" he asked once she already had it.

"To let them know we were invited."

Cassy walked off in the direction of the castle's front gate with the letter, leaving an exasperated Matt behind. He extended his hand in her direction, but his attempt to stop her withered away long before it could even come alive.

"You were invited?" The woman tilted her head and furrowed her thick eyebrows. "What did she mean?"

"I guess I should introduce myself, since we'll be going on the tour together," Matt said, chuckling nervously. "I'm Matt, she's Cassy. We're classmates at the Rustboro School in Hoenn… we were invited here by Count Fernando VIII because he wishes for me to follow up on archeological research my grandfather did here."

"Your grandfather… would he happen to be Sutter Chiaki? The famous archeologist and explorer?"

Matt immediately shrank back when he realized the woman knew who he was. His face turned red, and he quietly replied, "I see you know of him… might I ask what made you realize it?"

"Sutter Chiaki's work closely involved my people as well, so it was known that he had a grandson named Matt." When Matt returned the look of confusion she had just shown him, the woman brought one of her gloved hands to her chest. "My name is Sheena. I am the priestess that guards the Tenganist temple in Michina Town. Right now, I'm on a pilgrimage to learn more about the history of my people. That's why I've come to La Ciudad Dorada. My people have a historical connection to this land that I wish to learn more about."

"So that's how you knew… my grandfather's research here ended up involving your people as well."

"That's a part of it," Sheena said. "At some point, I would like to ask you some questions about Sutter and his work. Perhaps after the tour?"

"I don't have a problem with that." Matt looked over to the castle gate, where Cassy was showing the letter to the two women clad in Bronzong-themed armor who stood guard, and sighed. "She might be at that for a while, so who knows when the tour will even start."

"Then let's get to know each other and pass the time," the other tourist with Sheena suggested. She shut the book she was reading and jumped to her feet, causing the ribbon in her blue hair to shake. She took ahold of her billowing, gold-frilled black skirt and curtsied, saying "I'm Eleanor Laplace. I'm an engineer and I came here from Kalos because this place's technology fascinates me."

"Technology?" Matt questioned.

"Oh, you'll love it!" Just getting to talk about machines excited Eleanor. "There's a place in Kalos called the Azoth Kingdom. It's an entirely mechanized city built from the designs of the great inventor Nikola using Arcane Science! Well, it turns out La Ciudad Dorada is considered a sort of sister city to the Azoth Kingdom. It has its own type of Arcane Science that's similar to Nikola's but still unique. I'm just fascinated by all types of machines, so I had to come here and experience La Ciudad Dorada's technology for myself."

"I can relate to that," Matt said to Eleanor. "I'm into robotics and science myself. I've been studying them with Newton Graceland at the Rustboro School…"

" _The_ Newton Graceland?" Eleanor exclaimed. "You have to show me some of the designs you've worked on with him! Anyone who gets to work alongside someone like Dr. Graceland must have some real talent in them!"

Sheena raised her hand to her mouth and gently laughed. "Your energy is admirable, Eleanor. I hope I enjoy this tour as much as you clearly will." When she glanced over to the castle gates, Sheena saw something that made her blue eyes go wide. "It appears there's some sort of incident," she said to Matt and Eleanor.

Following Sheena's direction, Matt and Eleanor looked to the castle gates and saw Cassy heading back towards them. The guards stood at attention for the person who was with her, a tall, well-dressed young man whose blond hair was carefully combed into a sweeping style.

"You can say thank you any time you want," Cassy proudly said to the others as she stepped aside to let the man approach them.

"Allow me to apologize for not giving you a clear schedule to follow," he said, before putting his hand on his heart and bowing. "I'm Count Fernando the Eighth. It is my pleasure to finally meet you, Matt Chiaki."

"I… well, it's an honor, sir," Matt nervously sputtered in response.

"Did you bring the puzzle box?"

Matt nodded and reached into his bag, producing the box as Fernando requested. Its golden surface glistened in the sun, creating light that reflected in Fernando's intense green eyes as he examined it.

"So this artifact finally has found its way home," the count said. "I thank you for returning it."

"I can't say I know the entire story behind it," Matt admitted.

"That's fine, I didn't expect you to." Fernando turned back toward the castle and gestured over his shoulder. "Come, we have much to discuss. Let's head to the museum."

"Wait!" Just getting up the nerve for that one word took so much out of Matt that he had to catch his breath after saying it. Still, Fernando stopped walking to listen to him, so he considered that a relief. "It wouldn't be fair if you just took Cassy and I along on a special tour. Please, bring Sheena and Eleanor with us."

"Oh, come on," Cassy complained. "You know we have a lot of work to do."

"It might actually turn out to be helpful for us," Fernando said, though he did not turn around. "Perhaps they will have perspectives that will aid in our quest. Sheena, Eleanor, those were your names? Consider yourselves lucky, you're going to get to go on a very special tour today."

"Thank you!" both Sheena and Eleanor replied.

"Save your gratitude for the history you're about to witness. Now, let's get started. Come with me."

Fernando led the quartet past his guards and into the palace, passing underneath a huge stained glass mural that surrounded the castle's entrance. The group felt the air inside circulate with a cooling breeze, and Matt wiped his forehead again as relief from the heat set in.

Immediately past the entrance to Lingote Palace was a long hallway lined with more stained glass windows, which cast colorful sunlight onto the marble floor. The group had made it a fair distance inside before Fernando started speaking to them again.

"The reason why I summoned you to my kingdom, Matt, is because we are currently under a threat unlike any we have seen in ages."

"I could tell from your letter it was serious," Matt said. "But what exactly is the threat?"

"It is twofold," Fernando replied. "We have been threatened with invasion by outsiders who wish to steal our treasures. Compounding that is my sister, Rosalita… she has betrayed the kingdom. When news of the threatened invasion reached us, she murdered our parents, King Fernando VII and Queen Sophia."

A chorus of gasps went up among Fernando's four guests.

" _I knew this would be serious, but… murders?"_ Matt thought. _"Like my grandfather… was she connected to it somehow?"_

"Why would she do something like that?" Eleanor openly wondered.

"She has always been envious that I was chosen to ascend to the throne over her," Fernando answered sadly. "I can only surmise that she intends to aid the invasion in exchange for help seizing power for herself. She stole two of the three clues to the Golden City's location after the murders, and she kidnapped our family's royal Pokémon as well."

By this time, the group had reached a large set of double doors far down the hallway. Fernando stopped and turned around before continuing his explanation.

"And that is why I summoned you here, Matt. Our administrative functions are in disarray with everyone trying to figure out who can be trusted and who is in league with Rosalita. But even with two of the clues and our family's Pokémon, she cannot find the Golden City without the puzzle box, as it is the map that will reveal the Golden City's location in the end. If she cannot find it, she cannot seize power, as there is something sleeping there that all new rulers must obtain first. We must find it before she can, or La Ciudad Dorada will be lost."

"The temptation of great power can corrupt even the most noble hearts," Sheena commented. "I know. I've seen it firsthand. But what is this power you speak of, exactly?"

"You will see," Fernando answered as he pushed the doors open. "Welcome. To the history of La Ciudad Dorada."

Beyond the doors awaited a spacious room filled with exhibits around its walls and center. Ornate iron arches spread out overhead, and an intricate design of yellow, green, blue and tan covered the floor.

"This is the museum?" Matt asked to get confirmation. "It's impressive."

"As it should be. It's one of my kingdom's proudest places, where all of our history is kept for the world to appreciate."

Eleanor immediately broke from the others and ran right to a display case containing models of the train and other devices.

"This is exactly what I came here to see!" she exclaimed in excitement. "Just riding on it was exciting enough, but I want to really see how it works."

"The railroad, like all the rest of our technology, runs on the energy created by our Arcane Science," Fernando explained before adding, "but you probably knew that already. It allows us to prosper while having little effect on our environment."

"What are those other things?" she asked, pointing at a group of vehicles resembling old-fashioned cars and trucks, all of which had the same blue lamps on them as the locomotive.

"Exactly what they look like, vehicles produced locally by our engineers over time after combining the principles of Arcane Science with sparks of inspiration from abroad. These models are of older designs than what we have now, but the basic principles that power them remain the same."

"And these!" Eleanor exclaimed, moving on to a series of model buildings inside the case. Each of them had not only the Arcane Science lamps, but numerous moving parts such as large gears and wheels. "Those are the city's industrial plants!"

"Arcane Science allows us to produce everything we need with minimal, if any, pollution," the count informed her. "Instead of having to use coal, oil or gas as the outside world does, we are able to harness the life energy of our land to power our kingdom and its industry. That is the meaning of Arcane Science – utilizing the power of nature so we may thrive without damaging it."

Meanwhile, Matt and Sheena watched Eleanor converse with Fernando, and neither could help smiling at her enthusiasm.

"Hey, Matt, come here," Cassy called from nearby. "Look at this."

Sheena followed Matt as he joined Cassy at a red velvet rope, which was blocking off direct access to a painting in a golden frame. It depicted an elderly man in a dark suit with a thick, white beard and small, round spectacles.

"I know who that is," Matt said after putting his hand on his chin.

"Godey, the famous Sinnohan architect," Sheena identified. "He was a Tenganist and created works of art inspired by our beliefs. But why is a painting of him here?"

"Because he was the architect who created this museum," Fernando said as he and Eleanor rejoined the others. Unlike the clear pride he showed while showing the machine models to Eleanor, his expression had become inscrutable. "My grandfather, Fernando VI, was interested in Godey's works in Sinnoh, namely the Space-Time Tower in Alamos Town even before its completion. He hired Godey to design a reconstruction of this museum for us."

"Was your grandfather the king at the time my grandfather came here?" Matt asked. "He told me he worked with a Fernando, but he didn't tell me which one. If the Space-Time Tower was incomplete at the time, I think it lines up."

"You're right about that." Fernando broke from the group and stepped a short distance away before speaking again. "Want to meet the old man?"

Matt cocked his head. "Meet him? I don't understand."

"Then follow me and you will."

Matt and the others, who were as puzzled as he was, followed Fernando past a number of other paintings. They only got brief glances at each one, but the recurring theme of vast, lush landscapes shared by humans and Pokémon quickly became apparent. One painting in particular, depicting a gigantic Pokémon holding a tiny one in its hand, caught the attention of Eleanor and Sheena.

Eleanor tapped Sheena on the shoulder and whispered to her, "Regigigas and Shaymin, right?"

"Right," Sheena replied. "Both legendary, mythical Pokémon in Sinnoh. They must be here, too…"

"Well, here we are." Fernando stopped and stepped aside, gesturing to a line of golden statues against the wall. "Say hello to my grandfather… and all the kings before him."

The statues were of men of a variety of ages, all of them bearing at least rough similarities in appearance to their living descendant. There were six in all, with an open pedestal for a seventh at the end of the line. In front of each statue, as well as the empty stand, was a plate bearing the name of the individual king depicted as well as the years of their rule and some information about them.

"Monuments to each king…" Cassy observed.

"They aren't just monuments," Fernando corrected her. "These are the past kings themselves. As in, their bodies."

Almost immediately, Cassy recoiled with such force that she collided with Matt and nearly knocked him down. Sheena curled her lip. Eleanor, on the other hand, had no discernable reaction at all.

"Their… bodies?" Matt uttered. "Forgive me for saying this, but isn't that a little… morbid?"

"That's not for you to decide, to be frank with you," Fernando snapped, his voice remaining low but his manner becoming deadly serious. "This is a sacred custom that dates back to the beginning of our kingdom."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine, I forgive you," Fernando huffed, cutting Matt's apology off. "You're just a child. You haven't had the time to absorb the world the way your grandfather did."

Matt shrank back, too embarrassed by his faux pas to say anything further. His silence allowed Eleanor to step into the conversation.

"I don't quite understand. Can you explain the custom to us?" she asked.

"Now that's a good question. You see, once the life granted to our king reaches its end, we take great care to preserve them in gold so that they will never be forgotten. It is our way of honoring those who have gone to the Golden City and received its blessings."

"They do appear too lifelike to just be statues, now that I look more closely." The way Eleanor carefully examined the faces of the preserved bodies left Cassy to blanch in disgust. "It's rather intimidating to stand before six kings…" Eleanor suddenly realized something and turned around. "Wait, you're the eighth, right? Why are there only six here? Where is the seventh?"

"We haven't finished the process on my father yet." Fernando shut his eyes. "When my sister murdered our parents and fled, it left us in a state of crisis. We've had to focus on defense against her coup and it's left us no time to properly honor him yet."

"And to help against that coup you called me here," Matt said, finding his voice to seek confirmation of his belief.

"Precisely," Fernando replied. "We should move to the next part of the museum. It is necessary for you to understand what has happened here in the past."

"Wait!" Eleanor called out as the others started to follow Fernando away from the line of previous kings. "I have one more question!"

"Just one more before we move on," Fernando said over his shoulder.

"I just looked at these signs," Eleanor explained, "and I noticed the dates. Fernando I was in power over seven hundred years ago! How is that possible? How are there only eight generations over that much time? I don't understand how each king could live that long."

"They didn't all live for the same amount of time," Fernando corrected her, "but the answer is something you're about to find out. Come this way."

Eleanor frowned, but still left the gallery and rejoined Matt, Cassy and Sheena. The four followed Fernando all the way to end of the museum, past numerous exhibits, until they reached the back wall. Spreading out across that wall was an immense mural cast in bronze. Its scale in both physical size and in terms of the sweeping events it depicted left the quartet stunned at the sight of it. Even at a glance, the portrayals of humans and Pokémon engaged in an odyssey of peace and conflict that played across the artwork impressed upon the viewer the scope of La Ciudad Dorada's history.

"Sutter told me there was an amazing mural here he thought I should see," Matt said as he stared up at the artwork with the others.

"This is not the one your grandfather saw when he was here." Fernando's voice carried a hint of bitterness, and even though all of his guests heard it, none of them noticed him tighten his fists. "The original mural was replaced by this carving as the final piece of Godey's design of the museum. Once everything calms down, I intend to replace it with a new painting created by artists from La Ciudad Dorada, as the original one was."

"Would you donate this one to another museum?" Sheena asked. "It would be a shame for it to go to waste, and I can think of at least one museum in Sinnoh that would gladly accept it."

"Sure. They can have it," Fernando replied with a dismissive scoff. "That's a matter for another time. For now, the story of my kingdom."

Matt and the others followed Fernando's indication to the beginning of the tale depicted by the carving. The very first section showed people and simplistic buildings, all gathered under a large sun. Around them was a rough landscape dotted by a small number of plants.

"Long ago, this land was a desert where a small community of people dwelled," Fernando explained while his guests examined the artwork. "Life was difficult for them, but they worked hard and were in turn rewarded enough by the land permitting them to survive. So it was for a while, and the people were happy. However, it did not last. Eventually, the environment grew harsher, and the people struggled to just survive day by day. All seemed lost."

Fernando stopped talking and gestured for his guests to follow him to the next part of the mural, which they did. They found themselves looking up at a depiction of people surrounding a mountain while a man in a cape stood atop it, his arms spread to the sky. At his side were a Lucario and an insectoid Pokémon, while in front of him a single flower was planted. Above them all was the shape of the same hedgehog-like Pokémon Sheena and Eleanor had seen in the painting earlier.

"Just when the people were about to give up hope, a wanderer appeared," continued the count. "From where he came, they did not know. He was accompanied by the Pokémon called Lucario and Golisopod, and took pity on their suffering. In order to restore hope, he climbed the Sacred Hill and atop it planted a single flower, which he called Gracidea. He then asked the people to think of everything in their lives they were thankful for. The Gracidea flower responded to their feelings of gratitude, and from the golden light it cast, the Gardener of Gratitude emerged… Shaymin."

"I know stories from Sinnoh about Shaymin," Matt commented, not taking his eyes off the carving. "I knew it appeared in response to gratitude, so this all makes sense to me."

"Is there any knowledge of who the wanderer was?"

Sheena stepped forward and said in response to Cassy's question, "I can tell you, if Fernando would like me to."

"Go right ahead," Fernando urged.

"Well, he is the reason I came here in the first place," she said to the others. When she turned her eyes back up to the figure in the mural she missed Fernando clench his teeth, an act Matt, Cassy and Eleanor also didn't notice. "The writings of my people say that this man was a Tenganist warrior priest from the Ransei region who wandered the world in search of something."

"Something?" Cassy repeated, puzzled.

"It's not known what he was searching for, unfortunately. What is known about him is that he was extremely powerful and skilled in channeling Gaia, the energy that flows through the planet and all living things."

"I've heard that word before…" Matt said, again putting his hand on his chin while he searched his memory. "I think my grandfather mentioned it in passing, but I don't know anything about it."

"I would be happy to tell you more once we have some free time," Sheena offered. She brought her hands together in front of herself almost as if she was praying. "For now, though, what you should know is that it gives my people power. Every one of us is different… for example, I'm able to connect with the hearts of humans and Pokémon to communicate with them. The wanderer, on the other hand…" Sheena turned to Fernando. "Is it correct to say his power is a key to La Ciudad Dorada's history?"

"A very astute observation," Fernando complimented her, his earlier frustration seemingly gone. "Here, have a look at this."

The count guided his guests' attention to the next section of the carving. The wanderer was there, again standing over the people with his arms spread out, but in front of him were Shaymin and the shape of what appeared to be a fountain, along with a man wearing a crown. Behind him, meanwhile, was the gigantic Pokémon from the painting with Shaymin.

"Regigigas!" Matt exclaimed in surprise.

"You recognize it, the Colossal Pokémon?" Fernando ventured.

"There's no way I couldn't," Matt responded, "having grown up in Snowpoint City. I didn't know it was here too."

"As the people continued to express gratitude for what they had," said Fernando as he resumed the story, "Shaymin brought new life to the land, turning the once-barren desert into a lush paradise. With his work done, the wanderer entrusted Shaymin with the responsibility of ensuring the people stayed on the path of righteousness. A leader emerged among the people, one with the exact values Shaymin sought. In order to ensure wise leadership would continue and keep the kingdom on the correct path, the wanderer took all the people to where Regigigas slept. They knew not where it came from, but the wanderer taught them that it would watch over and protect them as long as they continued to be gracious for what the land gave them. He then built a fountain whose waters flowed with the life energy of the earth, gave Shaymin control of it, and invited the leader of the people to drink from it. When the leader did so, his body was invigorated and his life, greatly extended. He was my ancestor, King Fernando I."

"As I thought," Sheena said. "My people say that the wanderer was so skilled in using Gaia that he even discovered a way to infuse it into his body and render himself unaging. It makes sense that he could construct a device to do that for others."

"What did you mean by him giving Shaymin control of the fountain?" Eleanor asked while Matt stood nearby, lost in thought.

"To clarify," Fernando explained with his finger raised, "only Shaymin can make the fountain's life-giving waters flow, to ensure that only those judged worthy can obtain its power and lead our kingdom."

"I'm beginning to understand what the threat you summoned me here to help with is," Matt suddenly said.

"Oh?" Fernando wondered.

"You said your sister murdered your parents and stole two clues to the Golden City's location along with the royal Pokémon, which I assume is Shaymin. If that's correct, and your conclusion that she wants to usurp the throne is correct, I have to guess that the fountain is in the Golden City and she intends to take Shaymin there to obtain eternal youth."

Fernando joined his hands behind his back, shut his eyes, and smiled. "There's that brain that I knew would help me reach the Golden City before her." He pivoted around and beckoned his guests to follow. "The kingdom grew over several generations," he narrated as he guided the group past a depiction of Lingote Palace towering over a massive city filled with flora and Pokémon. "Eventually, as you know, it grew into an empire that stretched out into the horizon visible from the Sacred Hill. For many years, this prosperity continued unabated. However…"

Fernando came to a sudden stop, prompting the others to do so as well. They all looked up at the carving and found a very different scene playing out in front of them.

No longer were the residents of La Ciudad Dorada coexisting. They were locked in combat, both the humans and their Pokémon allies divided into two groups and viciously fighting. At the center of the chaos, two identical figures wearing crowns stood in opposition to each other.

"It clearly didn't last," Cassy guessed. "Who are those two in the middle of it?"

"The contemporary king and his… closest advisor," Fernando replied. "The king's advisor desired the power of the throne for himself and organized a rebellion. Soon, the royal court broke into two factions and La Ciudad Dorada descended into civil war."

"Sounds like the exact opposite of gratitude," Eleanor commented.

"Another astute observation," Fernando said while leading the group forward. "The war consumed the entire kingdom, and both the leaders and their people lost view of what to feel gratitude for. They lost their way, and, well…"

Instead of finishing his sentence, Fernando simply gestured to the mural, and once the quartet saw what was in front of them, they immediately understood.

The imagery was stark and unmistakable. Regigigas, with three smaller Pokémon around it, was smashing through buildings, roads and everything else in its path. Anything not within immediate reach was destroyed by projectiles and beams the four Pokémon deployed instead. Everything around them was aflame. Matt, Cassy, Eleanor and Sheena all understood exactly what the stakes were even before Fernando spoke again.

"When the kingdom lost its way, they fell victim to a great curse. Regigigas awoke from its slumber, summoned Regirock, Regice and Registeel to its side, and wrought terrible vengeance on the kingdom. It didn't matter which side of the war they were on, none were spared from Regigigas' judgment. Before long, the king and his advisor realized what they had done and laid down their arms."

Fernando took a single deep breath before escorting the group to the final part of the carving. The two identical figures now stood among broken buildings and ruined earth, raising their hands to Regigigas. Shaymin was in the air over their heads, giving off beams of light. Unlike the previous part of the mural, this one made its viewers relax. Even without explanation, they were able to see its message of peace.

"Once again, the king, his advisor and the rest of the people gave thanks for what they had. Shaymin was energized by these newfound feelings of gratitude, and was able to use its light to calm Regigigas. Regigigas and its three subordinates returned to sleep. The king and the people agreed not to rebuild their empire beyond the city surrounding the Sacred Hill, choosing instead to abandon that land as an act of respect for Regigigas' power. They built the Golden City around Regigigas' place of rest as a tribute to it, then obscured its location in order to hide both Regigigas and the life-giving fountain from everyone but a chosen few. And that…" Fernando turned around and put his hands on his hips. "...is the history of my kingdom. Do you understand why it is so urgent we find the Golden City before Rosalita does?"

None of the four answered at first. The story was still sinking into their minds.

"Yes," Matt finally answered, his voice low. "If Rosalita gets there first, she'll end up unleashing the curse again and Regigigas will destroy everything here. Everything it didn't destroy the first time."

Fernando nodded approvingly, but before he could say anything Eleanor asked him, "Doesn't she know what will happen?"

"She believes her vision for allowing La Ciudad Dorada to join deeply with the outside world is the righteous path." Mentioning this was getting Fernando emotional again, and this time he tightened his fists in full view of his guests. "She believes that beyond everything else. It's a game of life and death for the kingdom, and her obsession will destroy it!"

"If there is a risk of Regigigas awakening, I should come along as well," Sheena volunteered. "As I said, I can communicate with the hearts of humans and Pokémon. Should the worst case scenario occur, I can use my power to try and calm it down before anything happens."

"That will be helpful," Fernando replied, "though allow me to warn you that doing that with Regigigas won't be easy. That must be the absolute last resort."

"We'll have to work hard enough so it doesn't come to that," resolved Eleanor.

"What makes you want to be a part of this?" Cassy asked her.

"If you think about it, building a whole city out of gold must have taken some real ingenuity. I've got to see the Golden City so I can figure out how they did it." Eleanor frowned and turned her head away from Cassy. "Besides, I…"

Their conversation was cut off by the sudden sound of a bell's ominous chime. As soon as he heard it, Fernando looked up toward the ceiling with a look of shock on his face.

"What is that?"

Initially ignoring Matt's question, Fernando pushed past him and started heading back to the museum's exit before abruptly turning around. "As of this moment you four are soldiers of this kingdom," he declared, running his fingers over the golden buttons of his mint-green silk shirt. "We're under attack."

-:-

Outside Lingote Palace, the flower fields were aflame. The Pokémon living there fled the hilltop for their lives as gouts of fire rained from above. Four Pokémon, seemingly unsupervised by any trainer, were carrying out the siege with only a single Bronzong deployed by one of the guards to stand in their way.

One of the attacking Pokémon, a Magmortar wearing a glowing collar, turned both of his cannon arms toward an as-yet-undamaged patch of flowers and launched a wave of flames. The guard immediately replied, swinging her staff and calling out, "Bronzong, Protect!"

Her Pokémon responded with surprising agility, flying in front of Magmortar's Heat Wave and crossing its arms to generate a shield of light. It worked to deflect the flames, but within moments an Electivire - also wearing a glowing collar - bounded over Magmortar, using magnetism to propel herself. She produced electrified netting from her fingers, trapping and shocking Bronzong.

"Bronzong, try to escape using Gyro Ball!"

Bronzong exerted every ounce of its strength to try and force itself up, but ultimately, all it could do was raise its arms. Electivire's Electroweb held the Steel-and-Psychic-type Pokémon down and continued to conduct electricity into it.

With Bronzong sufficiently restrained, the collared Probopass sitting at the edge of the hill rotated to face the fourth attacker, a tortoise-like creature whose red-and-yellow body was covered with partially melted bits of metal armor. Probopass's eyes glowed with a green light that also surrounded the other Pokémon, who then levitated through the air as Probopass turned herself back towards Bronzong. Probopass deposited the other Pokémon near Electivire and Magmortar, and she stomped up to stand between them. All three then started to build up fire, with Magmortar gathering flames in his arms while the other two did so in their mouths.

"Bronzong, get out of there!" the guard plead with her Pokémon to no avail.

All three attacking Pokémon released blasts of fire at the prone Bronzong at once, the middle spinning into a cyclone shape while the others remained straight. The guard planted her staff in the ground, shut her eyes and braced herself for what seemed like the inevitable brutalization of her partner.

Her frightened state was broken not by the explosion she was expecting, but by the sound of a Poké Ball opening alongside a cry from an unexpected voice.

"Sally, Hydro Pump! Hurry!"

She reopened her eyes and discovered that Fernando, Matt, Cassy, Eleanor and Sheena had arrived alongside her at the gate. Matt was the one who had thrown a Poké Ball, releasing a Salamence who immediately spit a flood of water that turned the attackers' flames into harmless clouds of steam.

"Are you alright?" Fernando hurriedly asked the guard. When she nodded wordlessly, he instead asked, "What is all this?"

"They came over the side of the hill and just started burning everything," the guard shakily explained.

"That's… that's Heatran," Sheena said to the others as she stepped back. Her arms and legs shook as she pointed at the quadrupedal Pokémon between Electivire and Magmortar. "The Pokémon that's the living soul of volcanoes and magma…"

"What's it doing here?" Cassy wondered, her lip curling.

"Rosalita's begun her attack…" Fernando said to himself, though loud enough for his guests to hear. He turned to the guard and instructed her, "Have your Bronzong put out the fires. We should be able to deal with these four."

"Yes, sir." Recovering her composure, the guard pointed her staff at Bronzong. "Bronzong, Rain Dance!"

Even while still trapped underneath Electivire's Electroweb, Bronzong was able to lift its arms between the threads. Its eyes flashed white three times, and after the third flash, dark clouds gathered over the garden. Within seconds a heavy rain had begun, and the fires throughout the garden were soon well on their way to being put out.

"What other Pokémon do you have?" Fernando demanded of the group.

"If this was a one-on-one battle I have confidence Sally would be enough," Matt replied while reaching into his bag, "but looking at this… if I'm not mistaken, Heatran's Fire and Steel-type?"

"Yes, Fire and Steel," Sheena confirmed.

"Then I think I know what to do. Anton, Rocky, make your mark!"

In a single swift motion, Matt pulled two more Poké Balls from his bag and threw the spheres, which burst open in twin flares of light to release a Rhyperior and a Hitmonchan. Sally landed next to them and roared while the two Pokémon sized up their opponents; Anton stomped his heavy feet and Rocky hit his boxing gloves together to get ready.

The presence of new opponents drew the attackers' attention away from Bronzong. Heatran was the first to act, opening her wide iron mouth so light could gather inside of it. Magmortar rushed Matt's Pokémon before Heatran's attack completed, his arms glowing with green light.

"Rocky, stop Magmortar with Drain Punch!"

A green, swirling vortex took shape around Rocky's right arm as he ran forward to meet Magmortar. Both of them struck each other at the same time, and while they separated some green energy floated out of Magmortar's body and merged with Rocky, healing some of the wounds he had just suffered. Magmortar quickly recovered, however, and rushed back in to strike Rocky a second time to complete his Dual Chop.

At that point, Heatran could hold no more light in her mouth. Probopass locked onto Magmortar and lifted him out of the way with Telekinesis, giving Heatran the opening she needed to launch a powerful Flash Cannon attack at Anton. The Rhyperior was nowhere near agile enough to escape from the light, so he braced himself and took the beam's effects head-on.

"Good thing Anton's ability is Solid Rock," Cassy commented to the others. "That would have hurt him much more otherwise."

Fernando stepped up next to Matt and put a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. "It looks like that Probopass is playing a support role for its teammates," the count observed. "If it was knocked out of the fight, the others might lose their coordination."

"That's a good idea," Matt agreed, "but it's probably going to be tough breaking through to it." Turning to Anton, who was breathing deeply after taking Heatran's Flash Cannon, he directed, "Anton, see what you can do with Drill Run." He then said to his Salamence, "Sally, give Anton some air support."

While Sally pushed off into the air with her powerful wings, Anton started rotating the horn on his nose like a drill and lumbered forward with as much speed as he could muster. He had Probopass in his sights, but Heatran intervened by firing a quicker, less powerful Flash Cannon at him. Sally shielded her teammate by cutting off Heatran's attack with her own stream of fire, causing both forces to cancel each other out in an explosion of heat and smoke. Anton nodded and gave a growl of appreciation to Sally, who replied with a grunt that allowed some stray embers to slip from her mouth.

Suddenly, Electivire propelled herself into the air by projecting magnetic force from her hands. She cast an Electroweb from her fingers to repel Sally, who retreated rather than be trapped like Bronzong was, then pulled her fist back to punch the ground when she landed. The seismic wave that resulted knocked Anton off his feet, creating an opening for Heatran to fire Flash Cannon directly into his face.

"Sally, try to get Probopass from the air! Hydro Pump!"

Having dodged the Electroweb, Sally attempted to fly forward again, but as soon as she opened her mouth Probopass levitated Magmortar into her way. Magmortar unexpectedly discharged electricity from his body, a Thunderbolt that traveled up the water coming from Sally's maw and made her howl in pain as the shock coursed through her body.

"These aren't just random Pokémon, Matt uttered in frustration. "Rosalita trained them well…"

"My sister knows she needs an effective fighting force to take the throne," Fernando remarked.

While Matt and Fernando tried to work out a strategy, Sheena stepped forth. "Allow me to try using my power and connect with their hearts. I may be able to slow down or stop their attack." Sheena clasped her hands together and chanted, "Transcend the confines of time and space!"

When those words came off her lips, the world melted away in Sheena's mind. No longer did she see herself on the Sacred Hill with Fernando, Matt or anyone else beside her. Instead, her mind placed her consciousness in a sea of blue light with only the hearts of the Pokémon around her for company. Her visualizations of Anton, Rocky and Sally all had gentle blue auras around them, but Heatran, Electivire, Magmortar and Probopass were all cloaked in an intense red.

" _Please, stop your attack,"_ she mentally implored them. For a brief moment, it seemed to work. Sheena could feel herself connecting with them and sensed their hesitation to continue, but just as she smiled at her apparent success a flood of energy from the collars intensified their red auras. Their collective rage broke Sheena's concentration and forced her back into reality, where she stumbled back.

"Sheena!" Eleanor exclaimed in concern.

"They're too overcome with anger…" Sheena weakly said to the others. "I can't reach them. Just as I thought I got through, those collars influenced their minds, or at least they did on the three besides Heatran… Heatran doesn't have one, whatever's controlling it must be elsewhere."

"Wait, did you say collars?" Sheena's words made Matt stop to adjust his glasses and examine his opponents more closely. When he noticed the devices around the necks of Electivire and Magmortar, and around the red magnet on Probopass's head, he could feel his stomach sink. "Cassy…" he blankly said, "do those look familiar to you?"

"Collars with blue, glowing lights on them…" she said, squinting at Electivire and Magmortar. "Sure sounds like what your grandfather's secretary and those guards said they saw that night…"

"What is she speaking of?" Fernando questioned.

Matt didn't answer. He was too consumed with the storm of emotions the presence of the collars dragged up for him. _"They're the same as the one that Dragonite wore…"_ he thought, staring down at the ground with his mouth hanging open. _"That means that whoever sent these four… they have to be connected to the guy who killed him!"_

Cassy could tell from intently watching Matt what was about to happen. "Whatever you're about to do, don't do it before you think-"

"Rocky, go for Probopass with Drain Punch!" It wouldn't be accurate to say Matt ignored Cassy. Instead, he was completely unaware she'd even said anything. "Anton, hit Heatran with Drill Run!"

Neither Pokémon hesitated to follow their trainer's direction, even as reckless as it was. Rocky sprinted past Heatran, whose attention was drawn away by Anton heading straight for her. The legendary Fire-and-Steel-type Pokémon stomped one of her cross-shaped feet against the ground, sending a glowing yellow light cracking through the earth that ultimately erupted beneath Anton, knocking him down.

Rocky, meanwhile, found his path to Probopass blocked by Electivire and Magmortar. Electivire cast an Electroweb at Rocky in an attempt to ensnare him, only for the Fighting-type to weave around it. As soon as Rocky did so, Magmortar responded by extending his arms and aiming his cannons in the Hitmonchan's direction, while Electivire drew in a deep breath. Even in the rain, their combination of Heat Wave and Flamethrower had enough strength to send Rocky flying back to where he started when they hit him, leaving him covered with burn marks.

"Matt, calm down and listen to me," Cassy said while Rocky pushed himself back up. "I have an idea. At the school I read about Heatran. If I'm remembering correctly, Heatran's ability is Flash Fire. If you can get Rocky to copy it with Role Play, what just happened can't happen again."

"...because Rocky will absorb all their flames," Matt realized.

"Let me help you open up a path," volunteered Eleanor. "I can help."

"Alright," Matt agreed, "when you see an opening, try to distract Electivire." After seeing Eleanor nod in acquiescence, Matt turned his attention to his Pokémon. "Rocky, use Role Play on Heatran! Anton, you try Drill Run again!"

Rocky remained in place while his hulking teammate trudged forward once more. The Hitmonchan locked met Heatran's glare, causing his eyes to turn the same orange color as Heatran's. Heatran paid him no mind, instead opting to focus entirely on repelling Anton's approach. She aimed to again hit him in the face with Flash Cannon, only for Sally to swoop in from above and block it with her own Hydro Pump.

"Alright, Rocky, this is it! Go for Probopass as hard as you can!"

Sensing her opportunity, Eleanor threw a Poké Ball of her own and called out, "Persian, show that Electivire your Foul Play!"

Eleanor's Persian burst from the Poké Ball, and as soon as she materialized her differences from a normal Persian became apparent. She was purple instead of the usual tan color, and her head was fluffy and round.

The two Pokémon, Rocky and Persian, sprinted side-by-side toward their foes. Electivire tried and failed to snare them in an Electroweb, and after dodging it the pair split from each other. Persian grabbed Electivire with her front legs and flipped the Electric-type Pokémon into the air; Electivire managed to stabilize herself with Magnet Rise only for Sally to plow into her headfirst as a purple aura enveloped her body.

Left without his usual partner, Magmortar pressed on alone in a bid to protect Probopass. He again targeted Rocky with his arm cannons, but when he launched his Heat Wave from them, Rocky felt nothing from it. Empowered by his newly acquired Flash Fire ability, he was able to simply run through the flames, his body absorbing any that made contact with him. Seeing this, Magmortar didn't budge and instead shifted tactics. Electricity sparked around his body as a Thunderbolt started to take form. Before he could strike, however, Magmortar was blown away by a pulse of black energy rings Persian launched from the gem on her head. With that, Rocky had a clear path to Probopass.

Seeing the danger she was in, Probopass used her Telekinesis to levitate Heatran toward herself. This proved to be a fatal mistake. With her back now turned, Heatran couldn't protect herself. Sally seized the chance to knock Heatran to the ground by blasting her with water, where Anton was ready to keep up their counterattack by smashing his rotating horn into Heatran's side. A pained croak sounded from deep in the legendary Pokémon's throat, and her legs gave out.

Finally, with nothing left standing in his way, Rocky was able to pummel Probopass. The swirling green energy shifted between his hands with each punch, and with every strike he landed more of his visible injuries disappeared. For a short while all Probopass could do was wince and endure the blows, but eventually, she had enough. She released a magnetic pulse from her body to throw Rocky back, then detached the three small noses from her sides. Her eyes and the eye-like shapes on the small noses all glowed at once, and Electivire, Magmortar and Heatran were picked up by her Telekinesis. Propelling herself with her own magnetism, Probopass floated away, taking her three allies with her.

The battle left a grim situation in its wake. The garden atop the Sacred Hill, which had been lush and beautiful less than hour before, lay in smoldering cinders. Even though the fires were out the damage was done.

"This is my fault, isn't it?" Matt uttered, falling to his knees as the severity of the destruction before him sank in. "If I didn't bring that puzzle box here…"

"Rosalita would have done this no matter what," Fernando said, just managing to contain his anger. "We can rebuild. We _will_ rebuild, just as we always have. But to think she would resort to such acts… her thirst for the throne knows no bounds."

"This will only be the first battle of this war," Cassy warned.

"You're right," Fernando agreed, "which is why it is urgent we find the Golden City before her. If she gains eternal youth this will never end… we should retire to the castle library to examine the clue I still possess. She may already be on the trail of the two she stole."

-:-

At the edge of the city, away from the destructive battle at Lingote Palace, a young woman and young man stood in the shadow of one of the towers. Both had jet-black hair that matched their lightweight jackets, and carried six clockwork Poké Balls each on said jackets. The young woman was also wearing a device on her wrist that projected a red-and-black image of several Pokémon - specifically, Probopass, Electivire, Magmortar and Heatran.

"Lookin' like the test run was a success," she said, examining the image. "Bit tough keepin' track of so many Pokémon at once when they're fightin', but I'll get used."

"You were always the better of us two at it, Sis." The young man reached into his coat, retrieving a comb that he ran through his pompadour. "'ey, Sis. When we've got that Shaymin and all that gold, where do you want to go and spend it?"

"With that kind of cash, we could go anywhere." She shut off the projection, walked to her brother, and reached up to put her hand on his shoulder. "Where do you want?"

"Gotta admit, would be nice to head home and get to live like the bigs do for a change. Y'know, like Phenac City? Total opposite of those streets we grew up on."

"Bein' able to go off to that Realgam Tower and not get looked down on by those people… I like the way you think, Bro. Promise you, we ain't comin' off this job anything less than filthy rich ourselves when all's said and done."

 **END of CHAPTER 1**


	3. Brothers and Sisters

A note: during the in-universe time this story takes place in, the Fairy-type doesn't exist. As a result, Togekiss is its original Normal and Flying type.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 2:** Brothers and Sisters

-:-

Fernando didn't have to take Matt, Cassy, Eleanor and Sheena very far, as it turned out. Lingote Palace's archive was adjacent to the museum, through a door at the end of the bronze mural. It had the same marble floor as the central hallway and heavy wooden bookcases lining its stone walls. At the very end of the room, there was a fountain that created a curtain of water in the place of a window.

"As you can see, this archive isn't accessible to just anyone," Fernando said to his guests as he ushered them in, turning the archive's key over in his hand. "Normally you'd have to make special reservations to come in here, but these are exceptional circumstances. You," he said, looking to Sheena before pointing at a large, rolled-up piece of material in a nearby container, "fetch that map for me."

Sheena inhaled sharply when she realized Fernando was talking to her, but the surprise quickly wore off. She retrieved the map and brought it to the oak table in the center of the archive, where Fernando and the others had gathered.

"This is a map of the entirety of the land our kingdom once stood on," Fernando explained while he spread it out across the table. "Those tourist maps won't show you it all. If we're going to find where the trail to the Golden City begins, we'll need to see the whole picture."

"Hold on a minute before you show us that clue you have." Matt reached into his bag to get his laptop, then opened it and held its camera over the map. "I'll take a picture of it, that way we can check it while searching."

"Smart idea," Fernando complimented. "You have some of your grandfather in you after all."

Though these were words of praise, Matt still shrank back, his face reddening. Cassy, noticing this, stepped forward to take over the situation.

"We've got the map out, so let's get this show on the road," she forcefully suggested. "Let's see that clue."

"As you wish." Fernando produced a piece of aged parchment, which he laid down on the table. "If you don't mind, please read it without touching it."

Cassy was the one closest to Fernando, so she leaned over and read the text aloud. "Gifts of air and gifts of earth. Without one, the other cannot be obtained. Man presses on, searching for that which cannot be found on the surface. The riches of the earth rest where man allows himself to be swallowed up by it, possessing more than he had should he return."

"Somewhere where man allows himself to be swallowed by the earth," Matt repeated. "It certainly sounds voluntary, right?"

"I'd agree with you there," Eleanor concurred. "That means we can rule out something like quicksand. But at the same time, it clearly still sounds dangerous. Why talk about 'should he return,' otherwise?"

"You have a point," Cassy mused. "And this part, 'gifts of air and gifts of earth. Without one the other cannot be obtained.' Not only is this proverbial man going into the earth willingly, he needs a gift from the air to obtain the gifts of the earth. You know what that sounds like? Oxygen."

"So the implication is that if one goes into this place, there could be the danger of running out of oxygen," reasoned Sheena.

"Wait, I know what this sounds like!" Matt exclaimed, pounding his right fist into the palm of his left hand. "A place where people voluntarily enter the earth to gain its gifts, but face the risk of running out of oxygen if they aren't careful… that sounds like a mine to me."

Matt's proposal led to a wave of realization washing over the others. They all turned to Fernando, their stares asking him a question none of them had yet vocalized.

"I know exactly what you're thinking," he said, waving them off. "There is an abandoned mineral mine out in the desert." Fernando put his finger on a spot on the map well outside La Ciudad Dorada's present borders. "It was operational until several decades ago, but the buildings and mine remain there to this day."

"If it's that far out in the desert, how will we reach it?" Matt wondered.

"Down in the palace garage we have a number of vehicles I can loan you." Eleanor's eyes lit up the moment Fernando revealed this. "Come, let us go now."

Fernando left the table and headed for the exit, gesturing with his hand for the others to follow. While they walked, Cassy caught up to Matt and got his attention by tapping his shoulder.

"Listen," she whispered to him, "I'm going to stay behind and keep researching the books here. There might be information in this archive that could help. I'll see you off and then get right back to work here."

-:-

"Yahoo! This is exactly what I came here for!"

A bright afternoon sun hung in the sky over the desert outside La Ciudad Dorada as the group's vehicle sped across the arid landscape. Fernando had provided them with what looked very much like a small truck with a flatbed behind its cab. There was, however, one big difference - instead of wheels, it had flat discs emanating the blue light of Arcane Science as they levitated the vehicle a few inches off the ground.

Inside the vehicle's cab, Eleanor was overcome with giddiness just to have a chance at driving it.

"This is so much fun!" She couldn't help herself from practically jumping up and down in her seat, just managing to avoid pulling on the steering handles on the sides of the vehicle's glowing projection dashboard. "Matt! Sheena!" she called back to the others. "When this is over, we have got to see if Fernando's got any books about these machines in that archive!"

"I wouldn't mind reading those myself!" Matt said back to her, raising his voice over the wind.

For a while there wasn't much else in the way of conversation between the trio. Eleanor remained caught up in her delirious joy over the machine, while Matt and Sheena watched the landscape and some of its resident Pokémon go by. A group of Hippopotas clustered under the protection of two Hippowdon, and further off in the distance, a line of Camerupt could be seen traversing the desert.

"They all look so peaceful," Sheena observed. "What's going on with us and La Ciudad Dorada isn't affecting them. I hope it stays that way."

"That gives us something else to shoot for," Matt said in agreement. "The smoother our search goes, the better for everyone. Of course, Rosalita could be anywhere, so I think it's best if we prepare for our next encounter now."

"That's a good idea." Sheena moved to sit next to Matt so she could see his notes on his laptop.

"So far we know she has Heatran, Probopass, Electivire and Magmortar," he said while reviewing images on the laptop's screen. "All of them are weak to Ground-type moves, but they're trained to use tactics that allow them to be competitive."

"And they fight with great coordination," Sheena added.

"That's the part I don't totally get. Rosalita must have trained them so well that they can execute defined roles within the attack even without her presence. We have to watch out for that Probopass to show up, for one. It was clearly playing support but the way it was able to levitate its allies around will be trouble."

"Electivire certainly didn't need Probopass's help for that, though," Sheena remarked, staring at the screen. "Those Magnet Rise-powered leaps make it more of an aerial threat than you'd expect."

"You can say that again," Matt concurred. "Magmortar's fighting style was pretty straightforward, and really, Heatran's was too. What we have to watch out for with that one is just how powerful its individual strikes are."

"Not just that," Sheena corrected him. Matt had a hard time hearing her lowered voice and had to move his head closer to make out what she said. "You have to be very careful with that spiraling fire move it used. That's called Magma Storm. If your Pokémon is hit by it, it'll keep doing damage for a while afterward."

"That's just great," Matt sighed. "Between that and how easily Probopass can make it fly, Heatran's going to be the biggest danger when Rosalita sends it to attack again."

"Hey, you guys!" Eleanor interrupted. She didn't turn her head, instead just yelling loud enough for Matt and Sheena to hear. "I think we're here!"

Matt shut his laptop and joined Sheena in looking out at the small village they were approaching. A dilapidated factory stood tall above the surrounding buildings, themselves in similar states of partial ruin. Eleanor slowed the vehicle to a stop as soon as it entered the village, sending a cluster of Skorupi scattering as the three disembarked to explore the area.

"There's more to it than I even thought," Matt said to Sheena as he surveyed their surroundings. Neither of them noticed Eleanor wander off to investigate a nearby object covered by a huge tarp. "I was expecting an ordinary mining facility, not a whole community like this."

"I imagine life was tough for them here," Sheena ruminated, "but they got by. Maybe in a sense, the people who lived and worked here were the closest to living the way the original settlers of La Ciudad Dorada did."

"You guys?" Eleanor interrupted them, her voice quivering. "I think you should come here and look at this…"

When they turned around, both Matt and Sheena could see how heavily Eleanor was breathing. They ran over to join her at the tarp as she held its corner with a trembling hand.

"What is it?" Matt asked her.

"See for yourself." At that, Eleanor threw the tarp back with all her strength. It didn't lift all the way off, but it was enough to give Matt and Sheena a look at what was underneath.

An Arcane Science vehicle identical to their own greeted them.

"You see what I see, right?" Eleanor nervously wondered.

"Oh, I think do." Matt was careful to lower his voice as he examined the machine. "No way is a vehicle that was abandoned here decades ago going to look like it just came out of the garage yesterday."

"You mean it was just brought here recently…" Sheena's eyes grew wide as the realization of what this meant dawned on her. "Someone's here… right now."

The trio closed around each other and again inspected the ruined buildings surrounding them. They were searching not with curiosity, like they had been before, but with fear. Every partially standing wall, every broken beam, there was virtually nothing that couldn't be hiding a potential threat.

Aside from the gusting wind, the air was silent. Yet, that silence was more deafening than any sound could have been.

"You see anything?" Eleanor asked Matt and Sheena.

"No, but I bet whoever's here probably sees us," Matt replied.

"I was afraid you'd say that," added Sheena.

Suddenly, a loud crash in the house right next to the group pierced the silence. All three of them jumped, and they nearly fell over each other because of how close they all were.

"We should go investigate that," Eleanor suggested, recovering from the shock first.

"Yeah, you're… you're right about that." Matt slowly took one of his Poké Balls out of his bag, an act Eleanor copied for herself. "Stay close to me."

The group clustered together with Matt in the lead, warily approaching the building. Their steps went from crunching sand under their feet to making the floorboards creak as they got close to the door.

"Workers' Quarters, Section 9," Sheena quietly read from the sign next to the entrance. It was hanging lopsided by one nail, the other having rotted away long before.

With his free hand, Matt gently pushed the door open. It groaned loudly, making the trio cringe, but the dimly-lit room beyond was empty. As if on cue, another crash from further down the hall told them exactly where to go.

No words were exchanged between the three as they made their way to the source of the noise. The door to the room in question was ajar, and once near it, they could hear some sort of rustling behind it. Matt pushed himself against the wall next to the door, and while Eleanor and Sheena mimicked his action he rolled the Poké Ball in his hand so his thumb was on its button.

Finally, after a quick nod to Eleanor and Sheena to ensure they were all on the same page, Matt inhaled deeply, then burst through the door.

Inside was a Cacturne surrounded by over a dozen cans of food he'd knocked off the shelves. He had one in his hand that was torn open, and when Matt surprised him he dropped it, sending the colorful beans within it scattering everywhere.

"Oh…" Matt uttered, dumbfounded. The Cacturne backed toward the window while Eleanor and Sheena looked over Matt's shoulders at the scene. " _Oh._ "

"Sorry about that, Cacturne…" Sheena apologized.

"I saw in the brochure that Poké Beans are grown in La Ciudad Dorada…" Eleanor said, "so I guess it's no surprise they were canned for use at the mine…"

"We better get back to our business," Matt urged. "There's still someone here wh-"

Matt's words turned into a startled scream when something seized his ankles from behind. Both Eleanor and Sheena were grabbed by the same entity seconds later and reacted similarly. Matt and Eleanor's Poké Balls both clattered to the ground, and Cacturne fled through the window with a can of Poké Beans in his hand. All three of them were then hoisted into the air and left hanging upside down when the substance restraining them - which they could now see was thick, sticky silk - was attached to the ceiling by the Pokémon that attacked them. Their attacker was an insect with a thin body covered in vivid green leaves.

"Well done, Elena," the Pokémon's trainer said as she emerged from another room. Her features were completely obscured by the black, hooded cloak she wore, leaving her voice as the only way Matt, Eleanor and Sheena could tell anything about her identity. The mysterious woman walked right up to the three as they hung by their legs, showing no fear in her forceful, deliberate steps. "Who are you? Why have you come here?"

"I should ask you the same thing!" Matt choked back at her.

"Difference is, I'm in a position to make demands. You aren't." She turned to her Leavanny, Elena, and said, "Take his bag, we're searching it."

Elena complied and started working Matt's bag off of him with her spindly hands. Matt tried to pull it back from her, only to earn a sharp rap on his wrist for his trouble. The Leavanny then took his bag and passed it to her trainer.

Almost instantly upon looking inside, the cloaked woman froze. She stared into its confines for several long, tense moments before pulling out the puzzle box and confronting Matt with it.

"Where did you get this?" she demanded. "Just _who_ are you?"

"My grandfather was murdered by someone trying to take that, and you'll have to kill me if you want it!" he fumed.

"You're one of the people looking to steal La Ciudad Dorada's treasures, aren't you?!" Eleanor snapped at the now-confused woman.

"Where did… no, I know where you heard that. You talked to my brother, didn't you?"

"Did you just say… your brother?"

Instead of answering Sheena's question, the woman said to her Leavanny, "Elena, cut them down. They aren't enemies."

Elena daintily stepped forward and extended one of her arms, which glowed with green light and lengthened into a sharp blade. She then jumped up and cut the three lines of thread with a single graceful motion, sending Matt, Sheena and Eleanor crashing down. Eleanor recovered first and stumbled into the storage room to retrieve the Poké Balls she and Matt dropped.

The woman then put the puzzle box back in Matt's bag and pushed it toward him. "Here. I'm sorry."

"What does it matter?" Matt kept the Poké Ball in his hand once Eleanor returned it to him. "You're just going to kill us now that we found you, just like you did to your parents!"

"Now I know you definitely talked to my brother. He's lying!" She reached up and removed her hood, revealing billowing, cloud-like blonde hair and the same intense green eyes Fernando had. "I didn't kill them, he did. I've been hiding here since then, with what I could conceal from him. But you must be Sutter Chiaki's grandson… why are you here? Did Fernando send you to find me?"

"If he killed your parents, then…" Matt trailed off briefly, lost in thought. "He killed your parents, then he wrote to me… but…"

"Answer my question!" Rosalita interrupted to demand. "Why are you here and why do you have that relic?"

"My grandfather left it to me after he was killed, alright? Fernando wrote to me and asked me to bring it here so we could find the Golden City and protect La Ciudad Dorada!"

"So you could find the Golden City and protect La Ciudad Dorada…" Rosalita repeated. "I knew it. He's making his move…"

"If Fernando is the murderer, then what about Cassy?" Sheena asked.

Matt froze. He had been so caught up in what he was doing that he forgot Cassy was studying in the palace archive - under the same roof as a man who he'd just discovered very likely murdered his own parents.

"What are you talking about?" Rosalita questioned Sheena. She didn't wait for an answer before turning to Matt, who was fumbling to get his laptop. "Who is Cassy?"

"My friend who came with me on this trip," Matt answered. "She stayed behind when we came to this mine to do research in Lingote Palace's archive. And now she's there with Fernando…"

"He won't hurt her," Rosalita said, "or at least I have no reason to think he will. He gains nothing by doing it."

"Fine, I'll be the one to say it," Eleanor declared, crossing her arms. "How do we know you're not lying to frame _him_? Why'd you come out here instead of doing something to bring him to justice?"

"Rosalita would not lie, yes?" a tiny voice said. Matt, Eleanor and Sheena all turned to see a white-bodied, hedgehog-like Pokémon with grass and flowers growing from its back peeking out of the room Rosalita had been hiding in. "I stayed with her because she is the worthy one, yes?"

"Shaymin…" Sheena gasped in surprise.

"You're the Pokémon from the mural!" Eleanor exclaimed.

"Wait, if Shaymin's here with Rosalita, that means…" Matt trailed off as he took a moment to think about what he was hearing, though something Shaymin said quickly hit him. "The worthy one? Are you saying she's the heir?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you." Rosalita leaned down and ushered Shaymin into her arms, where the mythical Pokémon curled up in comfort. "Fernando framed me for the deaths of our parents. Maybe it was wrong of me to go into hiding, but I panicked and acted to take away as many of the tools he needs to seize power as I could. I'm trying to figure out how I can convince him to stop. How I can save him from himself."

"Isn't it a little late for convincing?" Matt said, a sound of disbelief breaking through his words. "How are you able to just forgive him so easily? He killed your parents, according to you!"

"I know, but…" Rosalita lowered her sad, watery eyes, causing Shaymin to look up at her in concern. "He was a good man and can be a good man again. I wouldn't be who I am without him and I'm grateful for that… his knowledge of our kingdom and drive to protect it is second to none. We need him. It's just…" Rosalita had to stop herself from sobbing. "Everything he's done, he's done it to save our kingdom. That's what he really believes… I have to just get him to see that he's gone too far. I have to save him…"

"It's not really my place to say," Sheena ventured, "but how has he convinced himself that murdering the king and queen helps the kingdom at all?"

"No, I don't blame you for asking." Rosalita breathed deeply, trying to soothe herself. "We don't really have time for the whole story now, but he told you the truth when he said the kingdom was threatened. He believes that he is the only one who can protect us and wants Regigigas's help doing so, but to do so he has to become king. That's why I have to get to the Golden City first."

"I'm still skeptical," Matt said, having just finished sending an email to Cassy warning her to be careful. "I didn't sign up for a family feud with power and immortality in the balance. I just wanted closure for my grandfather… you're asking me to choose a side in something where I can't fully agree with either side."

"What do you mean?" Rosalita asked him.

"If I believe you, and with Shaymin vouching for you I have no reason not to, Fernando is a killer who betrayed his family and his home and then lied to me to help him attain power. But if it's as you say, he did it for what he sees as a noble reason. You, on the other hand, you want me to help you stop him, but you also want to forgive him for all the crimes he's committed. I don't know if I can accept that."

"I understand…" Rosalita bitterly said. "I'm sorry you all became involved in this. It isn't fair. I can't ask you to forgive my brother for what he's done, but I still care about him and I can't just let him destroy himself."

Rosalita's words struck a chord in Matt's heart, leaving him silent. As much as he couldn't forgive Fernando for his actions, Rosalita's dedication to helping her brother moved him.

 _"I know that feeling, being willing to do anything to save someone you care about…"_ he thought. Images flooded his memory, ones that had happened years ago but still felt like yesterday to him. He saw himself riding on Anton's back - at the time the Rhyperior was an unevolved Rhyhorn - through a blizzard. With him was a blue-haired girl wearing goggles to protect her eyes.

"Matt?" Eleanor asked.

"Sorry, I got… caught up in thinking about something," he admitted. "I've decided. I'll keep going and help you find the Golden City. But I'm leading this expedition with Sheena and Eleanor's help. Rosalita, you're coming with us but we call the shots."

"That's acceptable, yes?" Despite sounding like a question for Rosalita, Shaymin's statement was actually aimed at Matt. "It will be like when I traveled to the Golden City with the professor, yes?"

"If Shaymin says so, I have no reason to disagree with your terms," Rosalita agreed.

"Then we should get goi-" Matt cut himself off when the meaning of Shaymin's words dawned on him. "When you traveled to the Golden City with the professor? What do you mean by that?"

"It was a great many years ago, yes? While I was serving at the side of Rosalita's grandfather, the professor and his apprentice came here, and together we all went on a grand adventure to the Golden City. It was a very fun time, yes?"

Matt took a step back and put his hand over his mouth. His evident shock made Shaymin stare at him with its head cocked to the side.

"What's wrong?" Sheena asked him.

"Sutter told me many stories of his adventures searching for the Golden City," he answered, his voice faint. "He never told me he _found it._ "

"Wait, I don't understand," Eleanor intervened. She turned to Shaymin and said, "If you went to the Golden City before, you should know where it is. Why don't we just go there now?"

"None will find the Golden City without first walking the path of the Three Pillars." Shaymin's response was automatic, almost robotic, and even lacked its typical verbal tic.

"The body shaped from the mountains themselves," Rosalita added. Her recitation was less rigid than Shaymin's, sounding more like the careful recollection of a student than a reflexive response. "The body forged within the blood of the earth. The body carved from the waters of life. So stand the Three Pillars, eternally guarding and being guarded by the great protector. Whence man steps forth to commune with the protector in its shrine, the path shall only appear to those who have gathered the light of the Three Pillars."

"Regirock, Registeel and Regice?" Eleanor deduced.

"You are very wise, yes?" Shaymin said, its normal manner returning.

Rosalita couldn't help but smile. "Yes, that is correct. Even with the location of where the Golden City should be, we cannot reach it without first finding Regirock, Registeel and Regice. That's what the three clues and the puzzle box are for. Now, with all of that said, tell me why you came here."

"Fernando showed us the clue he had and we decided it referenced this mine," Matt revealed.

"That makes sense," Rosalita said, putting her finger on her chin. "I had my own suspicions about this site. That's why I came here to hide. I thought that if Fernando followed the clue himself, it would be safer to stop him out here away from the city. But since you're here, Matt, and you brought the puzzle box, we can follow the trail ourselves and get there before he does!"

"Then we best get going," Sheena suggested.

"You're right." Rosalita recalled Elena to the safety of her Poké Ball, then turned away from the three and gestured for them to follow her, much like her brother had done earlier in the museum. "The elevator to go down into the mine isn't far from here. Come on, I'll show you."

Rosalita led Matt, Eleanor and Sheena back out of the workers' building and across the village, toward a large building next to the abandoned factory. Not one of them realized that a Yanmega wearing a glowing collar was flying overhead, watching them.

-:-

The siblings who directed the attack on Lingote Palace's garden had trekked a short distance into the desert beyond La Ciudad Dorada, leaving the city behind. They were huddled under the shade of a lone palm tree while the sister monitored what their Yanmega was seeing using her wrist device and a camera on Yanmega's collar.

"Looks like they found the princess, Bro," she said to her brother, who was fanning himself. Just as she finished talking, she squinted to examine the projected image more closely and gasped in surprise. "Yo, and that Shaymin's with her!"

"Jackpot on that one, Sis!" This news so excited him that he pushed himself forward off the tree with his foot before spreading his arms and looking to the sky. "It ain't gonna be long before our fortune is ours! Ya know what we should do with it?"

"What?"

"So if we go on back home, what do ya think of gettin' our old gang back together? There's gonna be so much cash in our pockets when this job's done, ain't gonna be a problem to help 'em out, too."

The young woman stopped to ponder her brother's idea. It was true, the riches they stood to gain were far beyond what just two people would need for a more than comfortable life. Her mind wandered back to memories of their youth.

Pyrite Town in those days was an incredibly bleak place that offered its residents only three real options for supporting themselves. You could go to work in the mines of a city underneath Pyrite, appropriately known as The Under. If you preferred to stay in the sun, battling at Pyrite Colosseum was an option. The problem with both of those choices was that Pyrite Town was corrupted to its core. No matter what you did, at some point your livelihood intersected with the culture of crime that so permeated the city. It was that reason for why so many residents of Pyrite Town chose option number three: abandoning all pretense and simply becoming criminals themselves.

Those were the circumstances the pair found themselves in. For as long as they could remember, they only had each other to rely on, and with no better choices they turned to stealing food and money to survive. Other children on the streets were drawn to her decisive leadership and his surprisingly gentle, compassionate personality, and together, they created the family none of them really had. Those in their orbit grew deeply loyal to the pair they dubbed "Big Sis Noel" and "Little Bro Leon," names that stuck even after Leon grew to be much taller than his sister.

"'ey, Sis, you awake?"

Noel shook her head as Leon's questions snapped her back to the present. "Sorry, Bro, I'm here. I feel ya on that one. Wouldn't be right if we just head home and forget where we came from."

"Ain't who we are," Leon agreed. "And I gotta be honest, Sis, I miss 'em. We've been flyin' solo for way too long."

"You can say that again, Bro. C'mon, we gotta get going."

Noel shut off the projection, then joined Leon in putting on backpack-like machines they'd brought with them. The devices had buttons on their straps that caused pairs of wings to spread out from them once Noel and Leon pressed them, and the bulbs on them emitted a blue glow as the siblings lifted into the air.

-:-

On their way down into the mine using the rickety work elevator, Eleanor released a Litwick, a Pokémon that looked like a candle with a blue flame. She sat on Eleanor's shoulder, giving light to the group as they started to explore. Matt, meanwhile, had taken out his laptop in order to record their search.

There was little discussion of anything among the four while they made their way deeper underground, following the narrow tunnels.

Unable to focus on the exploration, Matt couldn't help but let his mind wander to what he'd seen and heard over the course of the day.

"Rosalita, I've been wondering about something," he finally said, breaking the uneasy quiet over the group.

"Hm? What?"

"Your brother, does he have any Pokémon?" Matt narrowed his eyes. "I have to know."

"I don't understand where that question is coming from," Rosalita answered, putting her hand on the side of the tunnel for balance while Shaymin held onto her head. "But since you asked, no, he doesn't."

"Oh…"

"What is wrong?" Sheena asked him. His lack of a significant response left her unable to tell what kind of answer he actually wanted.

"I needed to know if Fernando had a Dragonite," he admitted, though his voice remained bland and lifeless. "After Rosalita said he killed their parents I started thinking that maybe he killed my grandfather, too. His killer attacked him with a Dragonite that was wearing one of those collars."

"So that's what you meant in the garden…" Sheena murmured to herself.

"I don't know how much it means coming from someone like me," Rosalita gently said, "but I'm sorry. What happened to him was horrible."

"Yeah, I liked the professor, yes?" Shaymin added. "He helped us keep our secrets safe."

"Since he found the Golden City and never told anyone, he sure did." Matt sighed in resignation. _"Not even me…"_ he thought, _"but why?"_

"Keeping them secret was the right thing to do back then," Rosalita said to Matt and Sheena while they kept walking. "Times have changed. Since Sutter was killed, I've realized more than ever that all the secrecy is causing too much harm. I hope you'll forgive me for saying this, but two families being destroyed over all of this is too many. It has to change."

"Heads up, guys," Eleanor called from the head of the group, interrupting the conversation before Matt or Sheena could press Rosalita for more details. "I found something."

Eleanor had stopped at the end of the tunnel, which appeared to open into a much larger cavern. Matt, Sheena and Rosalita joined her there, but none of them could see through the darkness to what lay beyond.

"You hear that?" Rosalita put her hand to her ear to help focus her hearing. "I think I hear water."

"I hear it too," Matt said, mimicking Rosalita's action before picking up a small rock and throwing it. It bounced off something deep in the murk and made a sound that echoed all around them.

"There's no way we can safely explore that big an area in such darkness," Sheena commented.

"Then we have to make it not be dark. Simple." Eleanor extended her arm, allowing Litwick to climb down onto her hand. "Litwick, Flash!"

The blue flame on Litwick's head flared several times greater than normal as its owner let out a cry that echoed through the cavern. She put all her energy into it, but was unable to light very far into the vast space.

"This isn't going to work…" Rosalita turned to Eleanor and saw how Litwick looked disappointed. "Oh, no, Litwick, you did a good job!" she said to the Pokémon. "I'll get you some Poké Beans when we're done here."

Rosalita's words of praise cheered Litwick up, and the candle Pokémon smiled at her.

"What's that?" Matt pointed at a box he'd spotted on the wall of the cave a few feet away when Litwick used Flash. It was made out of rusted red metal and had two unlit bulbs sticking out of it.

Eleanor approached the box and started examining it. "It might be just what we needed… a generator. If it still works we're set. Can one of you help me get it open?"

"I think so," Matt said. He took one of his Poké Balls from his bag and opened it, allowing Anton to materialize. "Anton, use Smart Strike on that generator's latch, would you?"

The Rhyperior assented to his trainer's request with a grunt, then fixed his stare on the rusted latch Matt indicated. His horn started to glow with a metallic sheen as he lowered his head, and he headbutted the latch, breaking it off in one blow.

"Well done, Anton. Thank you," Matt said, giving his Pokémon a pat on the arm.

With that task done, Litwick jumped off Eleanor's shoulder to sit on top of the generator and provide light to her. Eleanor used both hands and all of her strength to pull the cover open. It made a horrible grinding sound as it moved, but she still managed to make it give way so she could look around inside.

"How does it look?" Sheena asked her.

"Like it'll still work," replied the engineer. "Everything's still in place. I think it's time for my number one rule when it comes to trying out machines like this - give it a go and see what happens."

 _"Is that a good thing or not?"_ Matt couldn't help himself from thinking.

Eleanor pushed the generator's switch handle all the way down. Almost immediately, the two bulbs on the bottom of the box filled with the expected blue glow, and all around the cavern strings of lights flickered to life.

For the first time, the group could fully appreciate just how vast the mine truly was. The cave spread out all around them, making them notice that the cliff they were on was even smaller than they first thought. The lack of space on the ledge prompted Matt to immediately recall Anton to open up more room.

When Matt went to put away Anton's Poké Ball, Sheena caught a glimpse of golden light shining out of his bag. "What's that?"

"What?" Matt hadn't been looking at what he was doing, and when he did look, he immediately saw the light as well. He furrowed his brow, handed his laptop to Sheena and reached in to retrieve the source of the light - the puzzle box. "It's certainly never done _this_ before," he said, lifting it up. "Rosalita, do you know why?"

"Not for certain," she answered, cocking her head, "but I have an idea. I think I remember reading something about it in the palace archive once… 'the key shall show the road ahead,' I believe."

"It sounds like the puzzle box is going to guide us," Eleanor reasoned. "Matt, see if it does anything to show us the direction we need to go."

"Right, good idea."

Following Eleanor's suggestion, Matt stepped up to the cliff and held out the puzzle box as far as his arm could stretch. Nothing noticeable happened at first, so he moved to point it in different directions. After a few moments, its light suddenly intensified.

"There," Matt said, "something must be over there."

Eleanor joined him and peered out at the area the puzzle box was indicating. "That looks suspicious," she commented, pointing at a ledge below that was connected to the main landmass by an old, rickety wooden bridge. "We should go check that out."

"That bridge doesn't look safe," Sheena observed, having come up alongside Matt and Eleanor with Rosalita behind her.

"You're right," Matt agreed. He put the puzzle box back in his bag and took two more Poké Balls out. "But there's one thing we have in our favor… how big this mine is."

When he threw the spheres, Sally appeared alongside Matt's Magnezone, both hovering over the edge of the cliff. Rosalita quickly tossed one of her own Poké Balls as well, releasing a Staraptor to join them.

"Sally, bring Sheena and I down to that ledge, would you?" he asked his Salamence, gesturing to the cliff below. He then said to his Magnezone, "Zero, please take Eleanor."

"And we'll follow them, Reyes," Rosalita informed her Staraptor.

Sally was the first of the Pokémon to land on the precipice, allowing Matt and Sheena to climb onto her back. She then lifted herself back into the air and pulled away so Zero could take her place and collect Eleanor. Rosalita was last to get on her mount, but Reyes pushed to the front of the pack before the group started their descent.

"This place really is incredible," Eleanor marvelled as she looked around at the cavern. "This isn't what I was expecting a mineral mine to be like at all."

"A mineral mine? I guess Fernando told you that." Rosalita smiled sadly to herself. "The truth is, this mine yielded many more types of treasures than that. Matt, you're Sinnohan so you might understand this the most. In the past our kingdom mined precious artifacts, stones and even fossils here."

"Like the Sinnoh Underground," Matt realized.

"Yes. From what I understand there are also mines in Alola that are similar," Rosalita continued. "It doesn't matter now, though. The mining industry stopped being viable for us years ago, so this mine was closed."

When the group arrived at their destination, Rosalita jumped off of Reyes' back before Matt, Sheena and Eleanor disembarked. Shaymin ran right to the sheer rock face and stared at it. The four humans followed and started examining the wall as well.

"I don't see anything," Matt said to the others. "Is this not the right spot?"

"It doesn't look like there was any excavation done here," Rosalita reasoned, "so why is there a bridge to this spot? What is this?"

"Matt, your bag!" Eleanor exclaimed, pointing at him.

He hadn't noticed, but the light spilling out of his bag had intensified so much that the shape of the puzzle box could be seen through the material. The sight made him gasp, and he quickly took the cube out. Unsure of what to do with it, he simply held it up toward the wall.

The reaction was almost instant. A light matching that of the puzzle box emanated from the wall, and a golden archway and set of doors materialized right in front of the explorers' eyes.

"What?" Matt uttered, gasping for the second time in under a minute. "How does that even work?"

"Did the ones who built it use Gaia's power?" guessed Sheena. "If they did, making a shrine that only appears with a key would be possible."

"It is possible," Rosalita agreed. "The wanderer who came to this land seven hundred years ago left texts behind on how to use Gaia. As far as I know nobody has ever had the same talent in channeling it as he did, but construction of a vanishing shrine is probably within reason."

"Then let's investigate it before it disappears again." Eleanor marched right up to the stone doors, which bore the same 'H' shape pattern of dots that appeared on the puzzle box. Sheena followed right after her, while Matt and Rosalita hung back with their Pokémon.

"Sally, Zero, I'd like for you to guard the shrine while we're in there," he requested, earning cries of agreement from the pair. "There's always the chance we were followed."

"Reyes, you too, please," Rosalita said to her Staraptor, who replied with a determined squawk. She then turned to Matt and started walking with him to the doorway. "That was good thinking, I have to say. I've been expecting Fernando to follow us here the entire time…"

Matt opened his mouth to say something, but when he looked down at Rosalita next to him, he realized that her eyes were watering again. She had turned away from him and was staring rigidly at the doors.

 _"She expects it, but she doesn't want it to happen… she still hopes there's a way to fix everything with him, I guess…"_

"Let's get going," Rosalita said to Sheena and Eleanor, her voice hard and emotionless. She marched straight past them and pushed the doors open.

Eleanor stepped inside after Rosalita, allowing Litwick to illuminate the chamber. Matt and Sheena followed, all of them carefully looking around at their surroundings for any sign of what to do next. It was a simple stone room whose only features were the colorful paintings of Regigigas, Regirock, Registeel and Regice that spread across the walls and floor.

"Come here," Eleanor called out to the others, "look at this."

The engineer beckoned Matt, Sheena and Rosalita to the back wall, where Litwick's flame shed light on the writing inscribed on it.

"This writing… I've seen it before," Rosalita said after leaning in closer to examine it. Instead of ordinary written language, whatever was recorded on the wall was in patterns of dots. "But I don't know how to read it."

"I do." Matt stepped past the others, who looked at him with surprise on their faces. Lowering himself to be level with the writing, Matt began to read it, running his finger along the lines of text as he went. "Whosoever shall wear the crown, here begins the road. Walk this path with resolve and face the three trials that await. Here lies the first of the three trials. The body of rock shall only awaken for one whose gratitude blooms before us. Beware, for if gratitude does not bloom, destruction shall be at hand."

"Shall only awaken for one whose gratitude blooms before us," Sheena repeated. "It sounds like it wants us to express gratitude, but that wording is a little odd."

"I don't know what will happen to bring destruction if we get this wrong," Matt warned, "so we best think about what our next step is before we take it."

"Bloom, like a flower," reasoned Eleanor. "Maybe that's wordplay. What if it doesn't want our gratitude but a flower that represents gratitude? We could try Shaymin."

"It's not Shaymin," Rosalita realized. "Shaymin is the Gardener of Gratitude, but the gardener only plants the flowers. This message is referring to the flower of gratitude itself - the Gracidea."

Shaymin sat on Rosalita's shoulder and smiled proudly as she approached the wall. Matt, Sheena and Eleanor backed up to give her space. When she stood directly in front of the message, she reached into her cloak and took out a small box. It bore the image of a canine Pokémon with wing-like ears, which was holding three spears colored brown, silver and blue. Behind the Pokémon was the shape of a flower with six petals.

The same flower as the one in the coat of arms was inside the box when Rosalita opened it. It was a vivid pink color with yellow stamens and a pair of green leaves sticking out of it. Rosalita held the box up to the dots on the wall, and in response to the pollen that wafted out, the symbols started to glow. A strange light whose source could not be identified filled the shrine.

"What's happening now?" Eleanor wondered, putting words to the confusion all but Rosalita felt.

While the humans were distracted, the pollen of the Gracidea had also drifted over to Shaymin. Its body started to glow and change shape, becoming the Pokémon who was in Rosalita's coat of arms. The grass on the back of Shaymin's original form transformed into a mohawk-shaped tuft between its long ears, the two flowers surrounding its head became a single, scarf-like set of red petals, and its legs more than doubled in length.

"There is no need to be afraid, you!" Shaymin exclaimed, floating into the air once its transformation was complete. "This is the first trial on the road to the Golden City. The message said that, you!"

Eleanor was unable to stifle her laugh. "Thanks, but you sure have changed."

"It's Shaymin's Sky Forme," Rosalita revealed. "When Shaymin gets exposed to a Gracidea flower, it transforms and gains the ability to fly."

"I get a lot stronger too, so don't underestimate me, you!" Who Shaymin was talking to was unclear, but none of the four had much time to think about it. The doors of the shrine suddenly slammed shut, trapping them inside. "Don't focus on me now, you! He is here!"

"Who is here?" Matt nervously asked, though Shaymin didn't answer.

A beam of light erupted from the floor in front of the blocked exit, forcing Matt, Sheena and Eleanor to shield their eyes. Rosalita, on the other hand, wasn't bothered by it. She stared straight into the light as she readied one of her Poké Balls, her eyes burning with determination.

"This is my fight now, so stay back," she told the others. A shape was emerging from the light, though its features remained obscured at first. "I must do this if I am to prove my worth for the throne."

Finally, the light began to fade. A deep, robotic voice echoed through the shrine as the figure emerged from the glare, its rough, craggy body constructed of what appeared to be stones of various shapes simply stuck together.

"Regirock…" Matt uttered as he took his laptop back from Sheena to continue recording what was happening.

"I've waited a very long time to meet you, Regirock. My name is Rosalita, princess of the House of Fernando and current heir to the throne of La Ciudad Dorada. I have come to prove myself and claim my birthright!"

Despite Regirock's bizarre, inorganic appearance, it clearly understood Rosalita's words. It stomped one of its feet into the floor and braced its arms, the 'H'-shaped pattern of dots on its face flickering rapidly. In response to this seeming challenge, Rosalita threw her Poké Ball. It burst open to reveal a Bibarel, who immediately fell to all fours and prepared for battle when he saw Regirock.

"Regirock wants to see what Rosalita and her Pokémon are capable of," Sheena revealed to the others after clasping her hands and using her power. "This isn't a fight between predator and prey, or one living thing defending its nest from another. If I had to say, this is ritual combat."

"We might be seeing something very few people are lucky enough to see," Eleanor said in amazement. "Matt, make sure you record it!"

"I am, I am!" Matt hurriedly answered, making sure he had his laptop pointing in Bibarel and Regirock's direction.

The dots on Regirock's face flashed again while it grunted mechanically. It then raised its arms into the air, slammed them into the ground, and pointed them at Bibarel. A gust of sand burst out from around it, creating a sandstorm that spiraled around the chamber. Matt and Sheena had to back away to prevent the gritty vortex from getting in their eyes, but Eleanor nonchalantly donned a pair of goggles she'd been keeping in a pocket on her skirt.

Rosalita, meanwhile, put her hand above her eyes to shield them. "Sandstorm… I expected as much. Leonel, use Swords Dance!"

The princess's Bibarel lowered himself in preparation to leap at Regirock. Sword-shaped bursts of light circled him before being absorbed into his body, causing an intense red aura to briefly surround him.

"You're doing a good job, Leonel," Rosalita called out to him as the sandstorm buffeted him. "Now, strike with Liquidation!"

A coat of water enveloped Leonel's body before he finally sprang at the advancing Regirock. Their collision caused the water to explosively separate from Leonel's body, while Regirock was thrown back several feet before it could brace itself again.

"That surprises me," Sheena observed. "Everything I know about Regirock says it should be a lot more physically defensive than that."

"It's not a difference with Regirock, it's a difference with Bibarel," Matt deduced. "Its ability must be Simple, which would mean that Swords Dance had twice as much of an effect."

"I see," Sheena said, turning back to the battle.

Regirock raised its arms into the air, summoning forth a flurry of small, sharp stones. It then swung its arms forward, sending the rocks flying to slash at Leonel. The Bibarel dodged as many as he could, but enough hit him to force out a few pained cries.

"This is the sort of thing I know you can handle," Rosalita encouraged her Pokémon. He looked back to her and nodded with a grin on his face, making her smile as well. "Let's go with exactly what we practiced. Defense Curl!"

Leonel jumped into the air and rolled up into a ball. Where Swords Dance had drawn a red aura around him, Defense Curl elicited a blue one.

"So twice as much effect again, right?" Sheena asked Matt.

"Right," he confirmed.

While Leonel remained rolled up, Regirock summoned forth the ammunition it needed for another Stone Edge. Before it could launch the jagged projectiles, however, Rosalita swept her arm in front of herself, making her cloak flap dramatically in the air.

"Leonel, Rollout!"

The Bibarel rolled out of the way of Stone Edge with great speed, leaving Regirock's attack to crash harmlessly into the wall. He spun in a zigzag path toward Regirock before crashing into it. Regirock retaliated by pulling its arm back and charging the green energy of a Drain Punch into it, but by the time the legendary Pokémon swung its target had bounced off out of its reach.

Regirock's dots flashed rapidly, then it jumped into the air and landed again with enough force to send a shockwave through the ground. Leonel was still rolling, but Regirock's Stomping Tantrum knocked him off course for a moment. Eleanor had to jump back to avoid being hit.

"You've got a good pace going now, Leonel. Keep up using Rollout!"

Hearing his trainer's words of encouragement helped Leonel get back on track, and he curved around to head for Regirock again. This time, Regirock readied its Drain Punch in advance, so when Leonel made contact it was able to swing and connect immediately. Green light flowed from Leonel's body into Regirock's as the Normal-and-Water-type flipped back through the air.

Leonel managed to regain his composure, however, and rolled back up before he landed. He barreled straight for Regirock at a greater speed than before. Regirock paused for a moment to appraise the threat, its dots flashing in tune with its robotic voice, then countered by firing Stone Edge into Leonel at point-blank range.

"Ah!" Rosalita gasped when she saw her Pokémon crash backward. His Rollout had finally been stopped.

"That was good while it lasted," Matt said to Sheena while staring at his laptop. "She'd have to start a new Rollout all over now."

"And Leonel probably can't take too much more, even with a doubly effective Defense Curl," she added, taking note of the scratches and other injuries on Leonel's body.

Though Rosalita didn't hear Matt and Sheena's conversation, she was thinking of exactly the same things they were discussing.

"Can you keep going, Leonel?" she called out to him. Despite his weakened state, he sat up and cheerfully chattered back at her, raising her spirits enough to restore her determined smile. "I have to lead you to victory if I am to lead the kingdom, but I cannot and will not sacrifice those I'm responsible for… we must claim victory in this battle now. Swords Dance!"

Another ring of sword-shaped lights circled around Leonel's body, but unlike the first time he did this, a red aura didn't appear around him. This time, he glowed with a vivid red light instead.

"I think Leonel's hit his limit," Matt observed. "This really will end now, one way or another."

Regirock appeared to have come to the same conclusion. It stood still for a moment, appraising its opponent while making a beeping sound, then raised its arms, calling forth the greatest volume of jagged stones yet.

"This is it, Leonel!" Rosalita cried out, sweeping her arm again. "Go forth and claim victory! Liquidation!"

Right as Leonel cloaked himself in water and launched himself at Regirock, the legendary Pokémon released its Stone Edge. Leonel weaved his way through the assault with movements much like those he'd use while swimming. He couldn't evade every one of the stones, but the ones that penetrated his veil of water failed to rattle him.

An explosion of water and dust occurred when Leonel and Regirock collided, creating a muddy mess in the shrine. None of the group could see who came out on top at first, but as the air cleared, Regirock dropped to one knee. It groaned mechanically, then fell forward into the ground.

"We did it, Leonel!" Rosalita exclaimed, running over to hug her Pokémon. "We're finally on the road we've prepared for for so long!"

"I'm proud of you, you!" Shaymin praised her.

"That really was something else," Eleanor said, lifting her goggles as she approached the pair. Matt and Sheena were behind her. "I knew we were seeing something special."

"This is the path the heir to the throne must take to prove their worth," replied the princess, her manner turning serious again. "Ever since I was chosen, I've prepared for this." She stopped for a moment and pet Leonel's head. "I should say, _we've_ prepared for this. The trials are only going to get harder from here, though… it's a game of life and death for the kingdom, and our leader must be strong enough to give their own life to it."

"Since you were chosen?" Sheena asked. "There's quite a bit I'd like to ask you about. I came to this kingdom to learn more about my peoples' connection to it."

"Yeah, me too!" Eleanor exclaimed before adding, "Well, not that last part. But I love history and I want to hear all about it."

"Your interest is heartening," Rosalita said to them. "I wish my brother could see that there are outsiders who truly appreciate our way of life."

Suddenly, Matt, Rosalita, Sheena and Eleanor all heard a strange, unfamiliar voice speaking to them. It was deep, rough and seemed to be coming from everywhere.

 _"A body of rock. To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

"Who said that?" Matt wondered, looking around the shrine for the source of the voice.

"It was as if… it spoke directly into our minds," Sheena thought out loud. She and the others settled their questioning gazes on Regirock, who had begun glowing with golden light.

An invisible force started to pull on Matt's bag, and before he realized what was happening, the puzzle box floated out under its own volition. It was radiating the same light as Regirock, and the rays joined the two together. Regirock soon vanished, and the puzzle box lowered to the floor. When Matt picked it up, he noticed that the sides bearing Regirock's dot pattern were illuminated.

"A body of rock. To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained," he repeated. "That must be what this box really is for. It's not just a map, it's a key. It's how we gather Regirock, Regice and Registeel together to find Regigigas and the Golden City."

"You're correct," Rosalita said. "We still have much to discuss, but now is not the time. We must continue on."

The quartet turned to head for the doors, but they hadn't gotten far before they could hear the sound of an explosion outside.

"Now really isn't the time," remarked Eleanor.

"He must have found us…" Rosalita realized. She swiftly returned Leonel to his Poké Ball. "We're not exactly in a great position for this right now…"

When the group rushed outside the shrine, they were greeted by the clearing smoke from the explosion they'd just heard. Sally, Zero and Reyes were standing firm in the positions guarding the shrine, but across the chasm stood Noel and Leon. Heatran was with them, along with their collared Yanmega, Togekiss, Honchkrow and Lickilicky, all of whom snarled menacingly.

"Yo, what the heck were you doin' in there for so long?" Leon shouted across the crevasse with his fists on his hips. "You kept us waiting!"

"Why would it matter when we don't even know who you are?" Eleanor's expression had quite literally darkened compared to her typical, more upbeat personality.

"Get out of our way," Rosalita ordered the pair, staring at them with an intense fire burning in her already intense eyes. "I don't know if you're with Fernando or not, but honestly, I don't care. Walk away right now."

"Yeah, that ain't gonna happen," Leon dismissively replied.

"Then I'll make you move. Reyes, us-"

Before Rosalita could order an attack, Noel and Leon's Togekiss used her wings to send a blade of wind cutting through the air. It crashed into the ground right in front of Rosalita's feet, kicking up a small cloud of dust.

"No, no, no, you ain't doing that either," Noel declared, waving her finger. "This is how things are gonna go down. You're gonna hand us that magic box you got, and you're gonna give us Shaymin, too. We go to the Golden City, 'n maybe we let you outta this cave."

"Wait, Sis, where _is_ Shaymin?" Leon wondered. "Don't see it with 'em now."

"I'm right here, you!" Shaymin angrily announced, floating to the front of the group. "And I'm not going anywhere but with Rosalita, you!"

"It changed shape…" Leon realized.

"So there really is another form, huh," Noel said to herself. She crossed her arms and smiled. "Ain't gonna change a thing in the long run. You'll be comin' with us, whether we gotta make you or not."

Rosalita opened her mouth to say something, but she paused when Matt touched her shoulder on his way past her.

"Use this chance to get Shaymin out of here," he quietly said to her.

The princess nodded and stepped back, allowing Matt to take the lead.

"You gonna be a hero, dude?" Noel taunted him. "Ain't nobody gonna get between us and our ticket outta this, 'specially not a dork like you. Don't try me."

"You better listen to what Sis is tellin' you," Leon added.

"Well _I've_ got a question for _you_ ," Matt countered. "My grandfather was murdered by someone who used a Dragonite wearing one of those collars your Pokémon have. Was it you?"

Much to Matt's surprise, his question seemed to genuinely catch Noel and Leon off guard. Noel's aggressive confidence broke, and she jabbed a finger in Matt's direction.

"You got some nerve even suggesting that!" she angrily said to him, her eyes narrowed to mere slits. "Bro and I might be a lot of things but we ain't no killers! We're just doin' what we gotta do to survive!"

"Is that so," Matt responded, his voice turning bitter. "Because I haven't seen those collars since then… until today."

"The collars were on the Pokémon when we got 'em, dude," Leon admitted.

"What did you say?"

Before Matt could get an answer, Rosalita saw an opening in how Noel and Leon were engaged with him. "Shaymin, fly out of here," she whispered to the Pokémon.

"I won't leave you behind," Shaymin argued. "I must be at the side of the leader, you!"

"You don't need to worry about me," Rosalita asserted. "I'll catch up with you. Just go!"

Shaymin hesitated, but did eventually turn and start to fly back up the way the group came. Though he didn't see this, Matt still knew he had to draw out his argument with Noel and Leon.

"I'll ask you one more time, what did you mean when you said you 'got' the Pokémon and the collars?" he demanded of them. "From who?"

"I don't remember sayin' anything like that." Leon shrugged, taunting Matt with his knowing smirk. "You losin' your mind, dude?"

"You rich folks have been lookin' down on us street kids all our lives," Noel angrily said with her arms tightly crossed. "We ain't takin' it no more. This job is our ticket outta this life, and you ain't gonna take it aw-"

Suddenly, the pair's Lickilicky interrupted Noel's tirade with a cry of surprise. She'd spotted Shaymin making its escape.

"No!" Rosalita exclaimed when she realized her plan was shot. "Shaymin, run for it!"

It was already too late, however. The moment she saw Shaymin flying off, Noel got to work with the control device on her wrist and sent Honchkrow, Yanmega and Togekiss to block its escape route.

"Honchkrow, Icy Wind!" Noel directed. "Togekiss, Air Slash! Yanmega, Ancient Power!"

Honchkrow was the first of the three to act. Positioning himself directly in front of Shaymin, he flapped his broad wings to send a gust of chilled air over it. The attack wasn't very powerful, but Shaymin was still stricken by the cold, losing some of its agility. As a result it was unable to escape when Togekiss and Yanmega barraged it with a blade of wind and spheres of silver energy. Shaymin cried out from the force of the repeated impacts and fell back down to the ledge, where Rosalita caught it in her arms.

"You idiots just made a big mistake," Noel growled. "Since you did that, I'm doin' this. Lickilicky, Dragon Tail!"

The blue glow from Lickilicky's collar intensified, and purple light in the shape of a straight, pointed tail surrounded her typically curled one. She then jumped up and swept away the posts holding up the bridge on her side of the chasm, sending the rickety pathway collapsing uselessly to the opposite end.

"Oh, you guys did it now," Leon mocked. "You made Sis real mad."

"I'm done talkin' to you." With a sweep of her hand over her wrist device's projection, Noel beckoned Heatran to the front of her army. "Shaymin and the box. Now. Or I start puttin' the screws to you. We ain't killers but we don't have these Pokémon to not use 'em, and we got numbers on our side if you think you're fightin' back."

Matt froze. _"She certainly isn't kidding about that,"_ he thought. _"And we haven't got nearly enough space to even try fighting our way out, anyway… what to do?"_

"We aren't afraid of you, you!" Shaymin was back to its old self, having already recovered from its earlier injury. "I'm not going with you, and you're not getting the treasure either."

"Guess the decision's made for me," Matt sighed when he saw Shaymin fly in front of him.

"You made that decision, then. Not me." Noel manipulated the projection with her fingers and ordered, "Heatran, Magma Storm!"

Fixing her glare on Shaymin, Heatran opened her gaping mouth and blasted out a spiraling stream of fire. Shaymin ignored the very real danger this posed, and reared back to throw an Air Slash into the vortex.

Seeing that Shaymin's counterattack wouldn't be enough, Matt quickly called out, "Hydro Pump!"

The combination of Shaymin's Air Slash and Sally's Hydro Pump overcame Heatran's offense, canceling it out in a violent, smoky explosion. Matt covered his face as the force of the collision blew against him.

Before the smoke cleared, Rosalita stepped up next to Matt and put her hand on his shoulder. "I have an idea to get out of here, but I need what just happened to happen again."

"I don't like the sound of that," he answered nervously.

"We'll need it if we're going to get all the way down there." Rosalita pointed over the side of the cliff, where Matt could see an Arcane Science-powered, multi-car mining train sitting abandoned on tracks heading into another spacious tunnel at the bottom of the cavern.

"Ohhh, I get it now," he said. "I think I do, at least."

"What's the matter, can't decide how you're goin' to surrender?" Leon shouted across the chasm once the veil of smoke lifted enough to allow the two sides to see each other again.

"Tell Eleanor and Sheena the plan," Matt quietly said to Rosalita. "I'll handle this."

Rosalita nodded quickly and retreated to the others, leaving Matt to face Noel and Leon. Sally, Zero and Shaymin lined up in front of him.

"Are you gonna give me what I want," Noel demanded, "or do you think makin' me do that again is a good idea?"

"I pick door number three," he countered. "Sally, use Flamethrower! Zero, Thunderbolt!"

Matt's Salamence roared as she spouted a jet of fire from her mouth at Yanmega. Zero, meanwhile, took aim at Togekiss with a bolt of electricity that arced through the air from the antenna on its head. Finally, Shaymin contributed to the effort by lashing out with another Air Slash.

Noel hadn't expected Matt to actually try mounting a counteroffensive, so she wasn't ready to coordinate a response. All she could do was frantically go through the different control options her wrist device offered, her distraction forcing Leon to step in.

"I got this, Sis!" he said to her before turning his attention to the Pokémon. "Honchkrow, Icy Wind! Lickilicky, Water Pulse!"

The cold air that Honchkrow blew toward Sally's Flamethrower soon dissipated into a cloud of harmless steam, but the ring of water Lickilicky launched was able to lessen the intensity of the fire, so Yanmega took little damage from it. Immediately after, Honchkrow shielded his body with his wing, protecting it from a direct blow from Shaymin's Air Slash. Togekiss, however, took the full force of Zero's Thunderbolt, crying out and thrashing around while the electricity brightly illuminated the cave.

"Togekiss, escape that and use Hyper Voice!" Noel ordered the Normal-and-Flying-type Pokémon. In response to the command Noel gave with her wrist device, the light from Togekiss' collar intensified, its influence strengthening Togekiss enough for her to break free from the Thunderbolt.

She then flew to a vantage point where Sally, Zero and Shaymin were all in reach, took a deep breath, and unleashed a loud shriek. Although Zero had a robust defense against Normal-type attacks such as this, the sheer force Togekiss put into it forced the Electric-and-Steel-type Pokémon back just as it did to Zero's allies.

"You say you wanted door number three?" Noel bitterly mocked Matt. "Too bad, what you just did is only gonna get you door number two. Heatran, give 'im what he deserves!"

Noel swept her hand over the projection and then made a tight fist. In response to this motion, Heatran stomped forward, opened her mouth and spat out a Magma Storm more intense than the one before. Sally, Zero and Shaymin stood ready to stop it, and put all their effort into a combined Hydro Pump, Thunderbolt and Air Slash that met the vortex with explosive force. Matt, Rosalita, Eleanor and Sheena all had to brace themselves against the blast's force, while Leon held Noel in place. The air filled with smoke once again, though like the Magma Storm that went into creating it, there was much more of it than before.

"Shaymin, now!" Rosalita called out.

"You got it, you!"

Without hesitation, Shaymin dove straight into the huge cloud of smoke. It tensed all its muscles and focused its mind, drawing the smoke into its body. As it did so, the two scarf-like petals on its neck turned black. Still, it pressed on, growling to get through until it absorbed every trace of the acrid cloud.

Once the cloud was gone, Shaymin strained to keep it all contained. Finally, it screamed, "Take this, you!" before flying straight at Noel, Leon and their Pokémon.

Noel and Leon had no time to react before Shaymin unleashed a blinding light from its body, followed by a massive and powerful explosion. The pair were thrown all the way back into the wall several feet away, with their army scattering around them. Even the heavier Pokémon, Heatran and Lickilicky, couldn't stand against the force of the blast.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the destroyed bridge, Rosalita frantically told the others, "Hurry, we have to go right now!"

Matt, Sheena and Eleanor wasted no time in following Rosalita's direction to execute her plan. All four of them got back on the Pokémon that had helped them descend earlier - Matt and Sheena on Sally, Eleanor on Zero, and Rosalita on Reyes - and set off even deeper into the mine. Shaymin followed as soon as it recovered from attacking Noel and Leon, leaving the pair and their army of Pokémon behind.

When they reached the lowest area of the cavern, Shaymin had already caught up with them. "Hurry up, you!" it barked at them while they recalled their Pokémon.

"Is Shaymin always like this?" Matt flatly and sarcastically asked Rosalita.

"Only in Sky Forme," she answered, equally bitingly. "It would be best for us if we just listened…"

The quartet boarded the train and made their way to the engine at the head of it. All the cars and the engine had the same rusty, flaking red paint on them, and like almost all other Arcane Science technology, the engine had cylindrical bulbs sticking out of it. They were unlit, however, as were the controls Eleanor and Rosalita found when they went to examine the engine.

"I don't know if it still works," Rosalita confessed. "This plan wasn't guaranteed, but it was the best I had…" Noticing how attentively Eleanor was inspecting the controls, Rosalita asked her, "Am I wrong? Do you see something?"

"The actual wires and machinery all look intact," Eleanor said, poking at the cables. "It's missing a power source, but I can fix that."

Eleanor retrieved a Poké Ball from the waist of her skirt and opened it. A Rotom materialized out of it and floated in the air, the lightning bolt-shaped plasma surrounding its body trembling with every slight move it made. When it saw the machinery in front of itself, its smile turned into a toothy, excited grin.

"You want to power this train up, Rotom?"

Eleanor didn't need to ask Rotom twice. The Electric-and-Ghost-type dove straight into the control panel, and its energy brought the engine to life. The bulbs flickered and filled with blue light, and the panel illuminated to display the train's controls.

"Excellent!" Rosalita exclaimed. Looking over her shoulder, she called to Matt and Sheena, "Train's running! Time to go!"

Eleanor mimicked the motion of adjusting a train engineer's cap on her head before bringing her hands over the controls. "All aboard!"

At Eleanor's prompting, the train started to move. It jerked abruptly forward and stalled briefly before getting going, rolling into the tunnel with its wheels clicking rhythmically on the tracks. The group traveled in silence for several minutes before Matt finally exhaled and relaxed.

"Well, that's finally over," he sighed, sitting down against the interior of an empty gondola behind the engine.

Sitting down opposite Matt, Sheena called to Rosalita, "Where are we heading, anyway?"

"I had a look at a map of the old mining system earlier," the princess explained. "We entered the mine in section nine using the elevator. This rail line enters and exits the mine in section six, and there's lodging for workers not too far from where this tunnel ends. We'll be able to rest and recover there."

"That's a relief," Sheena said before taking a deep breath.

"Who were those two, though?" Matt wondered, adjusting his glasses and putting his hand on his chin. "I heard her say that this was their ticket out of a life of crime… once we're out of here I'll look and see if there's any public information on them. Maybe we can get an idea of who we're up against."

"They must be in league with my brother somehow…" Rosalita said as she joined Matt and Sheena riding in the gondola. Her serious attitude from earlier had broken, and she now both looked and sounded tired. "The collars, and those clockwork Poké Balls on their vests… both are Doradan Arcane Science technology."

"Then someone connected to your kingdom murdered my grandfather," Matt told her. "The witnesses to the killer said he had a Dragonite wearing one of those same collars. If it wasn't Fernando, and it wasn't those two we just dealt with, it was _someone_."

"Once I take the throne I'll find who in the court was involved," Rosalita vowed, hanging her head and turning her eyes up to see him. "It must have been someone in the government. The general public wouldn't know Sutter had that puzzle box."

 _"Wait, that sounds… strange,"_ Matt thought, moving his hand from his chin to his mouth as he considered Rosalita's words. _"It's true that not just anyone should have known he had the box. But if a new ruler must follow the path of the Three Pillars, and the box is necessary to gather them, then…"_

Matt's deductions were interrupted when Shaymin perched itself on the edge of the gondola. Seemingly both excited and agitated, it shrilled, "Look alive, you! The fight's not over!" as it stared off behind the train.

Despite Shaymin's alert, it wasn't until an impact shook the train that Matt, Sheena and Rosalita stood up and saw the threat.

Noel and Leon were giving chase, flying through the tunnel single-file with their wingpacks. Yanmega and Togekiss remained with them.

"Oh, when will you just quit?!" Rosalita yelled at them.

"When you give us Shaymin and that box!" Noel shouted back. "I told you, we ain't goin' back to the way our lives've been!"

"Well your lives aren't going to be made on the sacrifice of our kingdom, that I'm telling you now." Rosalita climbed out of the gondola and beckoned Matt to follow her, both of them boarding the flatcar immediately behind it. Shaymin flew to Rosalita's side, and she opened one of her Poké Balls, summoning her Luxray. "Shaymin, give me a hand here. Matt, you back me up."

"Got it, you!" Shaymin excitedly said.

"Same, but without the 'you,'" Matt added with a hint of sarcasm.

Seeing the defense being mounted against her efforts, Noel seized her chance to act first. Pointing forward, she commanded, "Yanmega, Ancient Power! Togekiss, Hyper Voice!"

Yanmega flew to the head of Noel's group and formed several silver energy orbs around himself. Before he could complete his attack, Rosalita countered, calling out, "Isabel, Thunderbolt!"

Sparks of electricity crackled from the Luxray's mane moments before she unleashed a burst of lightning from it, shooting down the spheres before they could impact the train. Togekiss dove in front of Yanmega immediately afterward and filled the tunnel with her earsplitting screeching, but even as it cringed from the pain the noise caused, Shaymin still rushed its enemy head-on. The mythical Pokémon stepped on Togekiss' head to stun her, then backflipped through the air and flung a blade of compressed wind directly into her face before laughing mischievously.

"Why are you givin' us such trouble?" Noel fumed. "You got a brother too! We ain't doin' anything you wouldn't do for him!"

Rosalita took a step back, and although Matt couldn't see her face, he correctly guessed from the way her whole body tensed up that she was upset and hurt.

"It's true that I love my brother…" she admitted, the vanishing of her previous confidence reflecting how torn she felt, "and trying to better your lives isn't wrong either. But you're wrong, I'm nothing like you!"

Noel was so angered and distracted by Rosalita's outburst that she nearly stopped flying after the train. "Of course you aren't. Rich kids like you never understood livin' on the street like we had to!"

During the argument, Noel had retrieved a normal Poké Ball from her belt, and once she was done fuming she opened it. The light within landed on the flatbed car and took the amorphous shape of a Muk. Unlike all the Muk Matt had seen before, this one had an oily blue body with green, yellow and pink flowing aimlessly through him. Some points on his body had solidified into small white crystals.

"Muk, use Gunk Shot!" Noel shouted.

Without hesitation, Muk coughed up a giant mass of sludge outlined by a golden aura. It was large enough to threaten both Pokémon assisting Rosalita, but while Shaymin could easily fly away from it, Isabel the Luxray had no such option.

A sudden flash in front of Rosalita and Isabel forced them both to shut their eyes. They could only hear the explosion that came moments later, and when they were able to look again, they discovered its source.

Standing in front of them on the flatcar was an Aggron. Matt had sent the Steel-and-Rock type out by opening his Poké Ball from around Rosalita's side, allowing him to intercept Gunk Shot without harm.

"That was close." Rosalita sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"Don't worry about it," Matt replied before turning his attention back to his Aggron. "I'm tired of doing this… Tony, use Dragon Claw on that Muk, please."

Noel grit her teeth. "Muk, get away using Rock Polish!"

Tony pulled his right arm back and advanced on Muk, his claws lengthened and glowing with a bright green hue. In response, Noel's Pokémon smoothed out his body, a wave of white light working its way across him as the irregular parts of his mass became uniform. Just before Tony was able to strike, Muk slipped away and slithered to the underside of the flatcar, where he adhered himself to remain out of Tony's reach. Togekiss then swooped into the opening, formed an Aura Sphere between her wings and flung it into Tony's chest. The Aggron roared as he stumbled back from the impact.

"This is never going to end at this rate," Rosalita realized. "Not with that Muk hiding like that… and if we reach the end of the tunnel they'll have room to bring out all their Pokémon again."

"We'll be swamped," Matt concurred.

"Good thing I've got an idea, you," Shaymin said to them both after floating down to them. "I say just stop them from following us. Get what I mean, you?"

Shaymin subtly nodded to the coupling between the train cars, and Rosalita immediately realized what it was suggesting. "I got it," she said to the Pokémon. "You push them back and we'll take care of the rest. Isabel, with me."

Rosalita carefully pushed by Matt and got back inside the gondola, then Isabel leaped over him to join her. She then gestured for Matt to follow her, and once only Tony and Muk remained on the flatcar, she called out to Shaymin.

"Do it now!"

With another mischievous grin, Shaymin reared back and spun multiple blades of wind into Yanmega and Togekiss. The pair were halted by the attack, while one of the Air Slashes came close enough to Noel to force her to stop flying after the train. Leon barely avoided crashing into her.

"Have Aggron use Dragon Claw on the coupling," the princess told Matt.

"Alright." He took Tony's Poké Ball back out of his bag, then called to the Steel-and-Rock-type, "I don't know if you heard her, but break the coupling with Dragon Claw!"

Tony turned around and grunted in acknowledgement to his trainer, then lumbered over and drove his glowing claws straight into the coupling between the gondola and the flatcar. The metal hooks cracked apart and lost their hold on each other.

Now no longer connected to the engine, the flatcar started slowing down. Tony roared in pride at his work, not noticing Muk come back up to the surface.

"Well done, Tony!" Matt praised him before recalling him into the Poké Ball, leaving Muk alone on the flatcar.

"You two might want to keep your heads down and back away for this part," Rosalita told Matt and Sheena. When they both looked questioningly at her, she added, "Just in case."

Though neither of them fully understood what Rosalita intended to do, Matt and Sheena shrugged at each other and went to the other end of the gondola as she suggested. Once Rosalita saw they were a safe distance away, she pointed at the ceiling and said to Isabel, "Use Thunderbolt and don't let up."

Thanks to the pace of the train, the electric bolts Isabel struck the ceiling with kept moving with her. The tunnel collapsed at each point she hit, filling the passageway with rocks that formed an ever-thickening barrier between the train and Noel, Leon and their Pokémon.

"That's enough," she told Isabel after a few minutes, prompting the Luxray to halt her attack. Rosalita gave her a scratch behind the ear, then went to join her companions at the front of the train. "They won't be getting out of the mine _this_ way, at least."

"You fought well," Matt said. "Not just now. Everything I saw you do today was impressive."

"I must agree," Sheena added. "La Ciudad Dorada is lucky to have such a driven leader."

"Thank you, even though I'm not really the leader yet." Rosalita sat down and frowned as she hung her head. "There's so much that still needs to be done. It's all rather overwhelming, and that's before taking my brother into account. I know I have to face him eventually and that's what has me scared the most."

"Scared?" Matt wondered.

"I'm not scared that he will harm me. I'm scared that when I face him again, I won't see the Fernando I love anymore. I'm sure those two goons were working for him and it leaves me to fear that he's already too far gone to be saved… when that time comes, I have to choose between him or the kingdom and I don't know if I'll be able to make the right choice."

By the time she was done talking, Rosalita's whole body was trembling. Sheena sat down next to her and took the princess' hand up in her own.

"I had to face a relative once who I was led to believe was a horrible person," Sheena told her, "and I had to do things that made me feel like the weight of the world was on my shoulders. I made a lot of mistakes along the way but in the end I was able to help do what needed to be done. I'm saying this because I understand how you feel right now, and if it means anything, I believe in you."

Rosalita was stunned by Sheena's words of support and couldn't form a response right away. "Th-thank you…" she finally managed to say. "I'm not even sure I deserve it. A real leader would have been able to deal with their own brother instead of running away the way I did."

"You may have made a mistake, but I promise you that it doesn't make you any less worthy of being a leader." Sheena tightened her grip on Rosalita's hand. "What matters is what you do from here, and I believe you'll do what's right."

Unable to hold back any longer, Rosalita started to tear up. "Thank you so much, I mean it…"

"You're already stronger than you think, you," Shaymin told her in a manner totally different from its typically boisterous personality. "You know what the kingdom's leader is expected to do and you're preparing yourself to face it. That means you're following in the footsteps of what your predecessors did, you."

Matt observed the increasingly emotional conversation between Rosalita, Sheena and Shaymin in silence. Feeling he had no right to insert himself into the exchange, he climbed over the end of the gondola and boarded the engine instead.

-:-

That evening, Fernando watched the sun slowly dip behind the mountainous horizon from a balcony in Lingote Palace. La Ciudad Dorada and the vast tract of land where its empire once stood were bathed in the brilliant orange glow that had long been a notorious attraction for tourists.

Fernando had draped himself in a crimson, gold-fringed cape fastened around his neck by an emblem of his family's coat of arms, which itself had three gold tassels hanging out from its sides. In his right hand, he held a staff that ended in an ornate, translucent gold bulb. Within the bulb rested a glowing, misshapen and prismatic jewel.

"I know you're out there, Sister," he said out loud. A breeze picked up, rustling his hair and cape for a moment. "Please just understand that I'm doing what I must to save us all… come home. There's still time for me to fix everything."

"Count Fernando?"

An aged man dressed in a regal purple-and-gold uniform stood in the glass doorway that led out to the balcony, waiting for acknowledgment before he approached or addressed his superior further. He had a medal with the coat of arms on it pinned to his chest, as well as a broad moustache.

"Ah?" Fernando said, turning around to face the official. "Oh, yes, I called for you. Come here."

Having secured Fernando's permission, the man joined him on the balcony. "What can I help you with, sir?"

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Fernando asked him, not immediately answering his question. "The land, I mean. Look at it."

"Of course it is. We've always worked to ensure it stays that way."

"Then you will understand why I need your help right now." Fernando turned to gaze out over the city again. "I want you to have your men begin preparing the skyship for launch."

"The skyship?" The official raised an eyebrow at Fernando's request, then pulled at the end of his moustache. "If I may, sir, I've served La Ciudad Dorada since your father's reign, and not one time during all those years did we need to launch the skyship."

"But you always kept it repaired and ready in case it was needed," Fernando said back. "Now is the time that you've been preparing for. I hope we will not need to actually launch it in the end, but La Ciudad Dorada is in danger and I need us to be ready."

"As you wish, Count Fernando. I'll give the order right away."

 **END of CHAPTER 2**


	4. The Purpose of Power

**CHAPTER 3:** The Purpose of Power

-:-

The end of the rail line out of the underground was far from the end of the journey Matt, Eleanor and Sheena had to take that day. After disembarking from the train, Rosalita led them on a hike through the wooded, mountainous terrain. It wasn't an easy path to take by itself, but their exhaustion from everything else that had already happened made the trip even more grueling.

At first, they followed the princess and kept all their questions about the situation in La Ciudad Dorada to themselves, but as the sun lowered and the sky dimmed in the last throes of daylight, those questions only got stronger. Finally, while the group passed by a Lickitung that was slurping his evening meal of berries out of a tree, Matt couldn't wait any longer.

"Why is it this far?" he asked Rosalita. "Wouldn't it make more sense to have the quarters near the train so the workers wouldn't need to travel?"

"It wasn't like this in the past," Rosalita explained. She did not turn around or stop walking while she spoke. "They had vehicles to ride back and forth with, but when the mine closed the workers brought them all back to La Ciudad Dorada."

"That makes sense," Eleanor said. "No reason to leave machines behind if they wouldn't get used anymore."

"But you can't take a train with you," Sheena commented.

"Exactly," the engineer agreed.

Their trek through the woods continued in the waning daylight. Wild Hoothoot and Noctowl heralded the emergence of night with their symphony of cries from the trees. When the sun dipped beneath the horizon, an entirely different light started shining in the group's midst, making them pause to look at it. The light was radiating directly from Shaymin's body.

Eleanor brought her hand to her mouth and gasped, then asked the Pokémon, "Are you alright?"

"When the sun goes away I can't keep this form, yoooouuuu-" Shaymin's body morphed within the light while it answered. No longer did it have its canine appearance or ability to fly. It reverted into its original hedgehog shape and flopped to the ground, though it managed to land on its feet. "You understand, yes?" it asked, looking timidly up at Eleanor.

"So its demeanor changes with its form," Sheena observed. "How curious."

"That's right," Rosalita said, walking over to Shaymin and picking it up so it could nestle in her arms again. "In a way, I admire Shaymin more than anyone else in our history. It's been here from the beginning, keeping our kingdom on the right track, yet that responsibility hasn't changed it at all. It gives me hope at times like these that everything will be okay ."

Shaymin squirmed around in Rosalita's arms to get more comfortable, then smiled. Multiple flowers emerged from the grass on its back.

Surprised by the sudden appearance of the new blossoms, Matt leaned closer to Shaymin and adjusted his glasses. "I didn't know Shaymin could do that."

"Shaymin appears in response to gratitude, and also gains strength from it," Rosalita explained. "One person's feelings of gratitude give it enough strength to grow flowers. It's said that during the civil war, when the entire kingdom gave thanks for what they had together, Shaymin manifested a power so great it was even able to overwhelm Regigigas, communicating to it that the people felt remorse for what they did."

"Even beyond the move it used in the mine?" Sheena said. "That's amazing…"

"It is, isn't it?" Shaymin happily murmured. "It's my Seed Flare, but better, yes?"

"Anyway, we should be going," Rosalita told the others. She walked in front of the rest of the group and said, "It isn't much further from here."

That was truly an understatement. Once the group set off again they arrived at the camp in mere minutes. Unlike the one where Matt and the others met Rosalita, this one was just a single two-story building instead of a small town. It was covered in plant growth, but for its years of disuse, was in surprisingly fair shape structurally.

"It does look like a good place to stop for the night," Matt said to Rosalita and Sheena as they stood outside the building and looked up at it. "Hopefully we don't end up disturbing any Pokémon taking food this time…"

"At least this time we'd be expecting it," Sheena pointed out.

"Yeah, that's true," Matt conceded, putting his hands in the pockets of his coat.

Rosalita advanced toward the building, but before she made it very far, Eleanor emerged from around the corner. She'd gone off on her own to investigate the area and returned with excitement evident on her face.

"You guys!" she called to Matt, Sheena and Rosalita. "Come over here and look what I found!"

Intrigued, Matt wasted no time in following Eleanor back around the corner, leaving Sheena and Rosalita with no choice but to go after the two of them. They were greeted by the sight of another Arcane Science vehicle that matched the ones they originally rode out to the mine using.

"I thought the workers took all the vehicles back with them when the mine closed," Sheena said.

"I certainly believed that was the case," Rosalita responded, taking a step closer to the machine. "It's to our benefit that it's here, though."

Eleanor, meanwhile, was inspecting the vehicle's controls. When she tapped her finger on its central panel, there was no response. She furrowed her brow and fetched Rotom's Poké Ball from her skirt.

"Give it some juice, would you?" she asked the skittish Pokémon after releasing it.

Rotom flashed its trademark toothy grin and nodded, then discharged some electricity from its plasma body into the machinery before it. The Pokémon continued until Eleanor signaled it to stop by raising her hand. The vehicle's control panel remained dark.

"Doesn't look like it's working," Eleanor called to the others. Before any of them could say anything, she playfully asked herself, "Can I fix it? Sure I can." Winking at Matt, Sheena and Rosalita, she added, "Give me time and I can fix anything."

-:-

Once night fell in La Ciudad Dorada, Lingote Palace's stained glass turned the castle into a vivid beacon over the town. Whereas sunlight filled its halls with color during the day, the electric glow from within cast the pigmentation of the glass out into the dark, cool air. Effectively, the palace transformed into a guiding star that ensured none could get lost within La Ciudad Dorada.

Only one room in Lingote Palace, the archive, lacked that light, but its absence didn't bother Cassy at all. Fernando provided her with a lamp, and its flame gave her all she needed to read the books kept there. Sitting at the oak table with the lamp, a stack of books and a drink mixed from locally-grown Poké Beans that she bought in the market, Cassy was well equipped for a busy night of studying.

Cassy was well into a book about the history of the royal family when she discovered something that caught her by surprise. Upon turning one of the pages, something slipped out of the tome and fell to the floor. When Cassy went to retrieve it, she saw that it was an old photograph. That wasn't what shocked her. It was when she realized who was in the photograph that she had to rub her eyes in disbelief.

Sutter stood squarely in the center of the image, flanked on one side by an aged man and on the other by a much younger one. The unidentified pair looked incredibly similar to each other facially, but it was the object in Sutter's hands that drew Cassy's attention the most. Matt's grandfather was holding the puzzle box.

"What is this?" Cassy wondered out loud. As she examined the photo more closely, she noticed something else she recognized. She could see iron arches overhead, and in the background, a portion of a familiar bronze mural. "The museum, so it was taken there…" A realization suddenly hit Cassy's mind, and she cocked her head while staring at the image in her hand and recalling Fernando's words. "Wait a minute… this museum was designed by Godey at Fernando VI's commission while the Space-Time Tower was unfinished. That's when Sutter traveled here… but the museum is clearly finished in this picture…"

At that point, something else about the photo caught Cassy's eye. On the left side of the image, she could see three of the gold-encased bodies of the previous kings in the background. The furthest one to the left was almost entirely cut off by the edge of the photo, and the other two were partially blocked from view, but Cassy could clearly see that the rightmost one was the last in the sequence.

Struck by inspiration, Cassy stood up with the photo in her hand and exited the archive into the museum. She walked through the exhibits, double-checking the photograph all the while, until she found the spot it was taken from. It was near a giant planetarium model where she finally stopped, raised the photo and backed up until the image lined up with what was there.

There was only one difference between the photograph and what Cassy could see from the same perspective. "I knew it," she said to herself, narrowing her eyes as she stared at the line of former kings entombed in gold.

There was one more king in the row presently than there was when the photo was taken.

It turned her stomach, but Cassy knew what she had to do to concretely confirm her suspicions. She approached the kings, every step she took making her grimace further. When she could push herself no further she held up the photo so the aged man on the far left was right next to the last statue in the line.

Once they were side-by-side there was no doubt any longer. The aged man in the photo was identical to the last of the kings in the gallery.

"Fernando VI…" Cassy uttered. Glancing over to the youngest of the three men in the picture, she said, "And you must be Fernando VII… but then…"

Cassy's eyes settled squarely on Sutter. She'd talked to him regularly in her years attending the Rustboro School prior to his death, but never had he puzzled her to the degree his image did at that moment.

"You… what were you up to?" she said to the photograph. "Why were you here then?"

-:-

Eleanor was busy working on the machinery of the broken vehicle, wearing her goggles while her Litwick provided light and her Rotom buzzed around in the air nearby. Matt, Sheena and Rosalita, meanwhile, sat nearby around a fire Matt started to cook preserved food they found in the camp. While he quietly worked on his laptop, Rosalita was happily regaling Sheena and Eleanor with stories of La Ciudad Dorada's history. The chorus of lively cries from the colony of Woobat and Swoobat living in the surrounding trees as they awoke for their nightly flight filtered along in the background to the princess's tales.

"You know," Eleanor said, gesturing to Rosalita using a wrench without turning around, "I'm having fun listening to you tell these stories."

Rosalita smiled wearily as she stroked Shaymin's back. "Thank you. Preserving the kingdom's mythology is another responsibility that falls to me, as the soon-to-be queen. I must be ready to pass it on to future generations."

"I know you'll do a good job," Sheena said to her. "I have to do the same thing for the shrine in Michina Town. It's not always easy, I won't lie about that. But by watching you battle Regirock and seeing you tackle what Fernando is doing, I know you can do it."

"I really appreciate that…" Rosalita reflexively turned away from Sheena to hide her face.

Even though he hadn't been participating in the exchange, Matt had carefully listened to it. He sensed that Rosalita's emotions were threatening to overwhelm her, so when the information he had been looking for appeared on his laptop's screen, he silently thanked his luck for its convenient timing.

"I hope you guys don't mind me interrupting," he said to his three partners. "I found something on those two from the mine."

"What? Who are they?" Rosalita rushed to ask him while Sheena and Eleanor stopped to pay attention. "Are they with my brother?"

"Honestly, probably." Matt and Rosalita both frowned at the same time, but he didn't notice, instead focusing his attention on the information surrounding the mugshots of Noel and Leon on the screen. "I heard her say something about stealing Shaymin and the box being a job that would get them out of a life of crime, so I thought there might be something out there on them. Turns out I was right. Their names are "Big Sis" Noel and "Little Bro" Leon. They led a gang of homeless orphans on the streets of Pyrite Town in Orre when they were kids. Back then it was petty crime just to get by, but as they got older the gang fell apart and they became Pokémon hunters who dodged the police by ambushing travelers in Orre's lawless desert zones outside its cities. They did mercenary work for bigger groups like Cipher and Team Snagem on and off until recently, when Orre's governor initiated a push for new laws to make desert travel safer." Matt looked up to Rosalita, who was staring at him as she absorbed what he was saying. "Obviously such laws would endanger them, so I'm thinking they somehow got into contact with Fernando and accepted a job from him to help get him to the Golden City. In exchange, he pays them enough to live the rest of their lives in comfort."

"I don't get it," Rosalita responded once Matt was done laying out his case. "All of this started because my brother thought he was protecting our home from outsiders. Why would he turn to not only outsiders but criminals for help?"

"Did'ya ever think that this whole thing was a setup?" Eleanor suggested, stopping her work to face the others. "Think about it. None of us are from here, and he already framed you for the murders of your parents. By having Noel and Leon do the dirty work while posing as someone who wants to keep the outsiders away, he can make it look like it really is all your fault, Rosa. As for us, he sent us along to do the work of finding the Golden City so Noel and Leon can swoop in and steal it and Shaymin for him while we, the outsiders, could later be framed as complicit. Boom, he gets everything he wants and has scapegoats to blame for it."

"That could be it," Matt said, "but there's one part I doubt he anticipated. If you're right about all that, I don't think he expected us to run into Rosalita." Turning to address Rosalita directly, he added, "Fernando didn't know where you were. Since we're with you, and Shaymin vouched for your character, he can't trick us into thinking you're the mastermind of this plot."

"This is exactly what I was afraid of," Rosalita admitted. Shaymin cast a worried glance up at her when it felt her hands trembling. "This isn't him. Or at least, it used to not be him. I want to believe I can save him, but if everything you said turns out to be true…"

"Please tell us about the real Fernando," Sheena requested, catching Rosalita by surprise. "Matt, what's your opinion? I think that if we understand the good man Rosalita believes he still can be, we might be able to help her save him."

"I, uh…" Matt shrank back. "Is it really my place to make her remember something that might be painful to think about?"

"I'm grateful for your concern," Rosalita gently thanked him. While Shaymin nestled in her arms again and sprouted flowers from its back, she said, "I would be happy to tell you, so don't worry. It's just that…" Despite her words, Rosalita hesitated. "It's just a little hard to think about how close we used to be."

~:~

Fernando and Rosalita ran laughing through the garden outside Lingote Palace, playing in the bright sun of their homeland. Shaymin chased after the two children as fast as its stubby legs could carry it, while their parents watched from a wrought iron bench nearby.

"Come on! Come on!" the boy called to his sister and their family's Pokémon. "Don't fall behind!"

"I'll catch you!" Rosalita playfully countered.

"You'll catch me when I let you," Fernando teased her back. He stopped running, turned around, and put his hand on his chest. "As the king," he said in an exaggerated deep voice, "I name you, Princess Rosalita, as my most important knight."

Playing along, Rosalita lowered herself to one knee before her brother. "I accept this honor, your highness." She then stood up, smiled broadly, and said, "You're so silly."

"Well, it's true!" Fernando said back, growing ever so slightly flustered before quickly regaining his composure. "It's going to be you and me, Rosalita. We'll be the best leaders the kingdom ever had!"

"Hey! Don't forget me, yes?" Shaymin complained, having finally caught up moments before. "At least wait until I make my decision, yes?"

"Don't you worry," Fernando said to Shaymin as he picked it up. "Everything will work out. Rosalita and I can do anything."

Without warning, Rosalita tackled Fernando, sending both the siblings and Shaymin falling into the dirt.

"I caught you, Fernando!" she exclaimed.

"Hey!" Shaymin huffed. "You're both silly, yes? What will I do with the two of you?"

Both Fernando and Rosalita started laughing uncontrollably. Their cheer was so infectious that even Shaymin couldn't help joining in.

~:~

"We were together like that from the beginning," Rosalita recalled. While she stared into the campfire, its flickering flames reflected in her watery eyes. "Since the palace was our whole world, it would be accurate to say we were each other's best friend on top of being family. Between the two of us and Shaymin, we didn't need anything else."

Matt remained silent, but nervously pressed his lips together and tightened his grip on his laptop. _"It really is a lot like Amanda and I,"_ he thought.

"He sounds like he really was a good person," Sheena gently said. "If it's not too painful for you, Rosalita, please tell us about what happened to change that."

"Yeah, I wanna know that too," Eleanor added, looking back over her shoulder. "Someone doesn't just go from saying they can do anything with their sister's help to framing said sister for killing their parents."

"Well, he was always prone to taking dramatic and grandiose actions, even when we were young, but he used to be incredibly caring. There was one time…" Rosalita couldn't help but laugh sadly to herself. "One time when we were maybe nine or ten, I broke my leg and had to stay in bed until it healed. You know what he did to cheer me up?"

The princess halted her recollection for a moment to allow her audience time to consider her question. They just looked back at her, waiting for her to continue.

"He actually went and had Mother and Father recruit the merchants of Dorada Market to bring me gifts," she revealed. "Basketfuls of berries, drinks made from the finest Poké Beans our kingdom can grow, new clothes, crafts made by local artisans… it was practically a second birthday for me that year, and he made sure I knew it was all his idea."

"How sweet of him," Sheena said with a smile. "Even if he was a bit egotistical about it, it was a wonderful gesture."

"See, now you get the kind of person he is." Rosalita stopped and considered her words. "The kind of person he was? Regardless, despite his ego he really was caring. I think it weighed on him, ironically. He was eager and proud to take on the ills of everyone in the kingdom, and was convinced he could fix everything."

"Such a responsibility would weigh heavily on anyone," Sheena mused, "but most particularly a young mind."

Rosalita nodded. "You're right. I think that's why, as we got older and started being prepared for our futures as leaders of the kingdom, Fernando voraciously hunted for more knowledge. It was an obsession with him. He had to learn everything, even that which Mother and Father thought we were not ready for."

~:~

The planetarium in the museum had fascinated Rosalita with its great size and attention to detail ever since she was a small child. Nothing of that changed when she grew into adolescence. That night, like many others, she stood before the model, staring up at it and letting her mind wander.

 _"I still wonder if there's someone out there among those stars…"_ she thought. _"Could there be someone looking at a model of our planet and thinking the same thing I am?"_

A loud thump from behind her startled Rosalita out of her reverie. She turned to look for its source and noticed that the door to the archive was ajar, with light filtering out from the room.

"Huh?" she said to herself. "That's unusual…"

Rosalita couldn't just walk away and ignore such a strange circumstance. She swept across the museum, her light slippers making little to no sound as she walked. When she made it to the door and peeked inside, she was greeted by the sight of her brother collecting several books from the floor.

"Fernando?" she said in surprise.

"Oh!" Fernando jumped when his sister made her presence known, but quickly recovered. "Oh, Rosalita, I'm glad you're here!"

"What are you doing?" Rosalita asked him as she stepped into the room. "Father told us we were only to study what he gave to us."

"Fine, you caught me…" he confessed. "But I found something I think you need to know. For us to fulfill that promise and be the best leaders La Ciudad Dorada ever had, remember?"

"I remember, but we shouldn't…" While Fernando returned to the table, where he had another book spread open, Rosalita couldn't help but have her curiosity piqued. Her objection to Fernando's actions faded away, and she joined him to look at the book in the lamplight. What caught her eye immediately was its reproduction of the civil war portion of the mural, specifically focused on the two identical crowned figures. "What is this?" she asked him, her nerves rattled.

"The history of our family," he answered, lifting one side of the tome so Rosalita could see their coat of arms on its cover. "But this part… this is something that caught me by surprise. The great civil war of our ancestor Fernando III's time… it was fought between Fernando III and his twin brother."

"Twins?" Rosalita gasped. "Like us…"

"Not just like us," Fernando clarified, his face rigid. "The only ones like us. We are only the second pair of twins born to a king in La Ciudad Dorada's history. The first were the ones who turned factions of our military on each other and caused the civil war that destroyed our great kingdom."

Rosalita could do nothing but back away from the table while holding her hand over her mouth. _"Mother and Father never told us this… are they afraid we'll…"_

Fernando stood up from the table with such haste that he nearly knocked the chair over and pulled Rosalita's hands into his own.

"Rosalita, listen to me," he begged her, meeting Rosalita's wide, nervous eyes with a fiery gaze. "We have to make another promise right now. Now that we know about this, it's not enough to be the best leaders the kingdom ever had. We have to be better than the last set of twins. Promise me that. Promise me that we will never end up that way."

"You already know I will support you," Rosalita said, finding her courage. "As long as we have each other, we can do anything. I won't let anything change that."

~:~

"...of course, that ended up changing anyway," Rosalita noted to the others before she wiped away a tear.

"He lied about that too," Eleanor pointed out. "You guys remember, right? He said it was the king and an advisor who fought each other, not that they were twins."

"That's right!" Sheena exclaimed. "I remember that, too."

"It makes sense that he wouldn't tell you about that," Rosalita said. "If you knew that twins fought the civil war and we were the first twins since then, you might have resisted going along with his plans to take the crown from me even if you didn't know that's what he's up to."

"Yeah, I hear you on that one…" Matt said in agreement. "But how is what he's doing now not breaking that promise and risking another civil war in the process?"

"I'm sure in his mind he's still technically keeping his promise," the princess deduced. "Fernando III was already king when his brother tried to overthrow him, and they used the full resources of La Ciudad Dorada to fight each other. When the story says that the kingdom lost its way, it means that. The people all turned on each other and the two factions fought using all the things our kingdom should have been thankful for. That might be why he simply hired foreign Pokémon hunters and set you up to have the puzzle box stolen by them."

"And if he doesn't want to repeat history then that might be why it looked like nobody outside the palace seemed to know what was going on," Sheena realized. "If the people think times are peaceful, they will not see a need to choose sides."

Matt nodded his head in silent agreement, but as he did so, a thought entered his mind that made him speak up. "Wait, Rosalita… you said he wants to take the crown from you. What's up with that? It sounded like he was going to be the king…"

"Until a certain day, we did not know for sure which of us was the heir to the throne. That's where your impression was wrong." Though Rosalita's correction was gentle, Matt still cringed in embarrassment. "It's understandable that you would be confused. A philosopher from a faraway land once said, "there are not two suns in the sky, nor two sovereigns over the people." Do you know that?"

"I do," Sheena said. "The philosophy section of Canalave Library has been like a second home to me. Reading those books helps give me perspective on my own duties."

"I'm not really as into the topic as you are, Sheena," Matt commented, "but the history involved does interest me."

"Well, it may have come from far away, but that saying is true in La Ciudad Dorada too," Rosalita continued. She turned her sad eyes down to Shaymin and put her hand on its back, while Matt continued transcribing her words with his laptop. "There can only be one king. Or queen, as it is. You understand what I mean. Because of that, there _is_ a custom in place should more than one child be born into the royal bloodline, even if it's only been needed twice. It's up to Shaymin to choose which of the descendants will become the heir to the throne. And when that day came for Fernando and I… that was the day everything started changing."

~:~

Fernando and Rosalita were walking briskly through a passage deep in Lingote Palace, guided by a pair of men clad in Bronzong armor and carrying staves. The panels of stained glass lining the walls had no light to illuminate them, leaving the glass to provide a somewhat ominous darkened backdrop for the siblings' march to their destiny.

Fernando glanced over at his sister and saw her staring at the floor, her brow furrowed. "Are you okay, Rosalita?" he asked her.

"I'm scared, I won't lie," she quietly replied. "It's one thing to just talk about the future, but… nothing's going to be the same after this."

"I do admit that's true…" Sensing there was more on Rosalita's mind than she was letting on, Fernando took her hand and squeezed it as they walked. "Do you remember that day in the garden, with Shaymin? It's going to be you and me. We'll be the best leaders the kingdom ever had."

Her memories of their childhood brightened Rosalita's mood, if just a little. "You're right. As long as we have each other, we can do anything."

"See, that's the way!" Fernando's voice echoed down the corridor. "This is just going to make official everything we already knew. After this, we can finally start working to protect our home for real."

"You know what you're talking about," Rosalita said, "as always. It is scary to think that what we've prepared for our whole lives is here, but I think we'll be okay…"

"You'll see," Fernando assured, "everything will work out."

"We're here," one of the guards said as the quartet arrived at a set of gold-lined wood doors. "King Fernando and Queen Sophia await you."

"Here we go…" Rosalita whispered to herself.

Each of the guards pushed open one side of the doorway to allow the siblings to pass, then closed the doors behind them. The chamber beyond had wall-to-wall stained glass and no solid floor, a fact Fernando and Rosalita quickly discovered when they felt their feet sink into the dirt.

Their parents were there waiting for them near an altar on which Shaymin was sitting. "My children, I welcome you," Fernando VII greeted them with a proud smile. He then gestured to a nearby patch of earth, where a single Gracidea was growing in sunlight let in by an opening in the ceiling. "This is where La Ciudad Dorada began, the seed that our homeland grew from… the first Gracidea. This sacred land, where the bringer of gratitude first helped our ancestors, is where you will inherit the responsibility our family has had for centuries."

While Fernando and Rosalita knew they were being summoned to a chamber they had never been allowed into before, that it was the site of the kingdom's founding caught them by surprise. They both felt the enormous weight in the air and the significance of what was happening. All they could do was stare at the original Gracidea in awe, their shared trance only breaking when Sophia walked over and embraced them.

"I'm so proud of you both," she told her children. "You've come so far to make it to this day. The dedication you both have to our kingdom, its history and its people leaves me optimistic for our future."

"Well, naturally," Fernando said. "Rosalita and I promised each other we'd become the best leaders La Ciudad Dorada has ever had. I intend to keep that promise."

"As long as we have each other, we can do anything," Rosalita added, repeating their oft-stated belief to their mother.

"I've always been happy to see how much you two can rely on each other." Sophia turned away and took her childrens' hands in her own. "Come. We must complete this ceremony first."

Sophia led her son and daughter to the altar. Once they stood before Shaymin, the queen returned to Fernando VII's side.

"As you know, my children, only one of you can inherit the throne and the gift of life that comes with it," the king reminded them. "Shaymin will decide which of you is worthy of receiving this power and responsibility."

"I have had many men come before me since the beginning of this kingdom, yes?" the tiny Pokémon spoke up. "All who obtain the waters of life must first understand their meaning. I want to hear what you two believe that to be, yes?'

"Well, it's because a kingdom needs a strong leader to follow," Fernando asserted. "When the right leader comes along, it is only natural that their life should be extended. That ensures stability for as long a time as possible. In other words, giving the king a long life is a testament and celebration of his being the leader that the kingdom needs."

"That's all true, but…" Rosalita looked down at the dirt. Her fears were finally able to come out. "It's kind of awful to think about what the king must go through. By living for so long, he's going to lose everyone he cares about." The princess balled her fists and tightened them so much her fingernails cut into her palms. "The only way to avoid that burden is if the king accepts that the only thing that will live as long as him is La Ciudad Dorada itself."

"I believe that it's a confirmation of strength," Fernando insisted. His missing her intended point made Rosalita sadly turn away. "A kingdom must have a strong leader that the people can put all their faith in. That's the way it should be and the way it's always been. The king shows the people the way, and they follow, thankful to have him share his wisdom."

"A kingdom is about more than just a single person," Rosalita quietly countered. "No kingdom would be anything without its subjects. They do feel gratitude for their leader, but the leader must know that he does not have anything without them and feel gratitude for them, too. I think that's why we give the king extended life, when all is said and done. We give it to him so he will understand that he is a servant of our subjects and must act for their collective good. It is profoundly sad, but… it must be done. A leader must be attached to those they lead above all else."

"Enough!" Shaymin intervened, its sudden intensity startling both Fernando and Rosalita. "I have heard enough, yes? Now it is time for me to make my decision."

"The Gardener has spoken," declared Fernando VII, closing his eyes. "My children, step forth and place your hands upon the altar."

Fernando and Rosalita looked at each other before they followed their father's instruction. The way she slouched and started dragging her feet made her brother cock his head in confusion as he followed her.

Once both of them had their hands on the altar, Shaymin tensed up in much the same way it did when it used Seed Flare. Bright lights emanating from Shaymin's body, the altar, and the single Gracidea in the ground, reflecting off the stained glass surrounding them to flood the chamber with color. It wasn't long before the brightness became overwhelming and forced Fernando and Rosalita to shut their eyes.

 _"There won't be anything to worry about once this is over,"_ Fernando thought, allowing a smile to slip onto his face. _"We'll have all the time in the world for Rosalita to see what I mean. It's just too much right n-"_

A sudden gasp from his sister broke Fernando out of his self-absorbed speculation. Even with his eyes closed, he could tell that the light had suddenly vanished from the room. When he snapped his head around to see what could have possibly gotten such a reaction from his sister, he nearly fainted at what he saw.

A crown of Gracidea flowers was sitting on Rosalita's head.

"What?!" he choked. He so disbelieved what he was seeing that he reached up to feel his own head, unable to fully grasp what was happening until he realized there was nothing there. "I don't understand this…"

Rosalita, meanwhile, could no longer hold back her tears. She crossed her hands in front of herself, lowered her head, and said, "I was so afraid this was going to happen… Fernando, I'm sorry."

"I don't understand this at all!" was all Fernando could say. It was as if he didn't hear Rosalita's words. "Am I to believe that everything I did to prepare to be king was wrong? Is protecting La Ciudad Dorada wrong?!"

"You misunderstand. That is not why I have passed you over, yes?" Shaymin told him. "You have prepared valiantly to come to the defense of your realm, but you still do not understand the sacrifice necessary to be a truly wise leader."

"Father, Mother, is this true?" Fernando demanded of his parents. "How can it be wrong to protect the kingdom?"

"Please, Fernando, don't misinterpret what this means," Sophia gently said. "You still have much to contribute to La Ciudad Dorada. Your drive to protect it is invaluable. This is not a judgment on the worth of your character, just your understanding of the meaning of power."

"How can I believe that?" he continued fuming. He struggled to keep his emotions from flying completely out of control, but even gritting his teeth as hard as he could did little to check how he felt. "You can't expect me to accept that all one needs to become king is some platitude about sacrifice. All that tells me is that being willing to do anything to protect the kingdom doesn't make one worthy of the crown at all!" Turning to Rosalita, Fernando said, "What could you possibly know that I don't?! Every day I've been training and gathering knowledge for how to best defend this land! How can you protect the kingdom as well as I could?"

"Fernando, can't you see that this is a good thing?" she tried to reason with her brother. "You're free. Now you don't have to sacrifice your life… you can still help me protect the kingdom, but I'll shoulder the weight of the throne. Don't you remember? We'll be the greatest leaders the kingdom has ever had. Nothing has changed that… the roles are just reversed. We can do anything as long as we have each other…"

"What good is that when there won't be anything to protect?!" he snapped, making Rosalita visibly recoil. "The only way to ensure future security is to know everything about the past and be willing to use it. I've spent years gathering that knowledge! You didn't! I sought it all out by my own volition! You didn't! Until the day where you see my point of view, how could you ever be able to do what is necessary to save La Ciudad Dorada?"

"How can you say that when we promised we'd never end up like the twins who fought the civil war?" Rosalita shot back. "Have you forgotten everything already?"

"I will not make the mistakes of our ancestors," Fernando declared. "I will simply prove to you that my views are correct, to lay it out as plain as day for all of you that the way I've been chasing all these years is the kingdom's last, best hope. And when I do, that will be the end of things."

With that, Fernando turned away from the altar and marched out of the chamber, leaving Shaymin, his sister and his parents behind.

~:~

"He has never stopped seeing that as a fundamental betrayal of the kingdom itself," Rosalita explained with a weary voice. "No matter who tells him otherwise, he still sees it as a rejection of the idea of protecting the kingdom at any cost."

"Sounds to me like he's made it his whole identity," Matt ventured. "Don't get me wrong, all I've got to go on is meeting the man for a little while and what you're telling us now."

"No, you're correct," Rosalita said. "The Fernando I grew up with… he vanished. I want to believe he's still in there somewhere, but… he vanished. He was consumed by his obsession with proving that his views were superior."

Over at the vehicle, Eleanor shuddered at what she was hearing. "Kinda ironic when you think about it, Rosa," she noted with a hint of bitterness. "It sounds like he sacrificed his identity after all."

Rosalita hesitated to consider what Eleanor had pointed out. "I… had never thought about it like that before. Perhaps you're right."

"But there's one link still missing, at least for me," Sheena said, carefully thinking about what she knew and what she'd been told. "He clearly didn't snap and kill your parents immediately. Was it the threat against the kingdom alone that pushed him over the edge?"

"I don't think so," Rosalita admitted. She had to wipe away a tear before she could continue. "Fernando, as I said, became obsessed with proving that his views were superior. Every future ruler, once officially named as the heir to the throne, begins being educated in the information only the leader is allowed to know. I was no different, and that was when Fernando started spending every waking moment studying relentlessly in the archive. In fact, it wasn't uncommon to see him spend several days straight in there. He just knew that there had to be something that would prove him right. A few years ago, I think he found something."

"He did?" Matt said, his eyes widening. "What was it?"

"I don't know. He just got up and disappeared, leaving a note telling us he was going to travel overseas for a while. When he came back… something had changed about him."

~:~

La Ciudad Dorada's train station was always a busy place, and that day was no different. Yet, it was a day that was far from normal. The presence of Rosalita and her entourage of three guards made that very apparent to the crowds around her. Murmurs floated around amongst tourists and residents alike, all of whom recognized the future queen.

She paid them no mind. They were why the guards had accompanied her from the palace. Her reason for being there was to intercept Fernando, who disembarked the train wearing a dark suit and black sunglasses.

"What do you think you're doing?" Rosalita demanded, confronting him while the guards formed a semicircle behind her.

"I ought to ask you the same thing," he coldly answered. "You have much bigger things to worry about than where I am. Come to think of it, that reminds me of something I need to ask you."

Rosalita crossed her arms and pouted. "What?"

"Tell me, Rosalita…" Fernando said while sticking his hands into his pockets, "when you become queen, what will your policy towards the outside world be?"

Caught by surprise by Fernando's question, Rosalita tilted her head toward him and raised an eyebrow. "What will my policy towards the outside world be?" she repeated. "Well, I guess… I haven't really put too much thought into it yet, but I think it would be a good thing if we had more of a relationship with the lands beyond our borders."

Fernando sighed in annoyance. "I was afraid you were going to say that," he told his sister, spreading his arms before reaching up to take hold of his sunglasses.

When he removed them, Rosalita felt a chill run down her spine. His eyes were filled with an icy, focused anger unlike anything she'd seen from him before.

"What happened?" she managed to ask him in a shaky voice. "Where did you go?"

"I cannot support anything along those lines," Fernando declared, ignoring her questions. "If you are going to so blindly expose La Ciudad Dorada to the dangers that lurk abroad I will have no choice but to refuse any role in your government."

"Have you forgotten the promises we made to each other?" Rosalita pleaded.

"You will come to understand what I know." Fernando retorted, once again ignoring his sister's questioning. "It may not be right away, but you will see in time that the outsiders do not respect La Ciudad Dorada or its culture. They come here and take things from us while never appreciating what it is that we have here. That's what I've learned. When the day comes that you understand that indelible truth, that will be the time for our promises to be fulfilled."

~:~

"What happened after that?" Sheena wondered out loud.

"To tell you the truth, that's it," Rosalita confessed, once more looking down at Shaymin in her lap. "Even though that was a few years ago, nothing new actually happened until recently, when we received the threat against our kingdom. You know by now what happened then."

Matt adjusted his glasses and took his turn staring into the fire. "I can understand why you want to forgive him now," he said, "even if I still have doubts about him being redeemable."

"There are things he's done that I think should be punished," Sheena agreed with Matt before turning back to Rosalita and adding, "but if you want to try and save him, Rosalita, we should do our best to accomplish that. He's _your_ brother, so it should be your decision."

"Sheena's right," Matt admitted. "No matter what I think about him… I couldn't imagine losing my relationship with my sister, so I have no right to not support you now. Amanda and I were a lot like you and Fernando… I can't block you from trying to save that."

"And for what it's worth," Eleanor chimed in, "I'm not gonna turn my back on you either, Rosa. We've come this far already. Besides," she said, holding up her wrench, "you're gonna need my help to keep your equipment going."

"All of you…" Rosalita was stunned by the outpouring of support she was receiving. She couldn't organize her feelings into words until Matt handed her his handkerchief to wipe her eyes. That act gave her time to collect herself. "Thank you. I have no right to force you into this affair…"

Sheena took Rosalita's hand in her own once again. "I think I can comfortably say that I speak for all of us when I tell you that you aren't forcing anyone." Sheena checked for a quick visual confirmation of her belief, which she got with a nod from Matt and Eleanor shaking another tool in the air. "Like I told you, I understand how you feel with all the responsibility on your shoulders, Rosalita. We will see this through to the end."

The princess hesitated, but she soon remembered something her father told her. She could practically feel herself back in Lingote Palace, as if she'd traveled back in time to hear it again. _"Rosalita, when you become queen, it will be up to you to decide what kind of direction you want to take La Ciudad Dorada in. The truth about our history is but a tool for you to use in the course of your decisions. Shaymin choosing you is an acknowledgement that you possess the wisdom of a true leader."_

Her father's words echoing in her head made Rosalita feel a surge of confidence swell within her. "You're right. I'm not going to be afraid anymore," she resolved. "I can't be. The people of La Ciudad Dorada need me to fight for them, and I refuse to let them down."

"There you go!" Sheena said with a smile.

"Let's get to work, then." Rosalita reached into her cloak and retrieved a pair of pieces of parchment, much like the one Fernando had showed them earlier in the archive. "These are two of the clues to where the Golden City is. Only current and future kings are permitted to have these, but I wasn't able to keep all three of them away from Fernando. You surely know that already, though."

"Yeah," Matt replied. "Can I look at them? We'll want to get going first thing tomorrow if we can."

"Given the circumstances, I will grant you that permission."

Rosalita handed the documents over to Matt, and he wasted no time in reading them. Or he at least tried to start reading them, but couldn't restrain himself from vocalizing the surprise he felt upon seeing that the clues were written in dot patterns.

"It's Braille, again," he uttered. "This must be what you were referring to when you said you'd seen it before."

"You're correct," Rosalita confirmed. "Although, as I also did say, I can't read it. I never had a chance to learn how to. When did you learn it?"

"My grandfather was the one who taught me, actually." Matt adjusted his glasses once more and then looked up at the night sky. The last of the Woobat and Swoobat living in the area were flying out of their trees. "I've got a sister who's very important to me, just like how Fernando is clearly important to you. Her name's Amanda. Thing is, she was blinded in an accident when we were both very young. That wasn't going to keep her back, though… when our grandfather got us into the Rustboro School, he made sure of that."

~:~

Sutter was sitting at his office desk, looking out over Rustboro City, when his doorbell rang. He pivoted his chair away from the window and called out, "Come in."

With his grandfather's permission, Matt opened the door and pushed through it, walking backwards to bring Amanda's wheelchair into the office with him. Amanda, the blue-haired girl who accompanied Matt into the snow on Anton's back, was wearing a diamond-patterned school uniform virtually identical to her brother's. The cloudy look of her eyes gave away her lack of sight, but the wounds that robbed them of most of their function had largely faded. Only small scratches remained, ones that could only be seen if one looked for them.

"Grandpa!" Amanda greeted him.

"Ah, Amanda, Matt, I'm so happy to see the two of you," Sutter wistfully said, leaning back in his chair. "How's life in Rustboro treating you these days?"

"I dunno how I'm fitting in so far, to be honest," Matt answered. "This place is really different from Snowpoint, that's for sure."

"It's nice for it to be the two of us on our own, though," Amanda added. "And it's fun heading out to Mauville and Slateport, too. The Food Court and Battle Tent are great. Thanks for helping us get set up here, Grandpa."

"It's the least I could do." Sutter clasped his hands on the desk. "You kids deserve the same chance I had, and that son of mine wasn't giving you it. I'll see to it that your lives here are better than that."

"Thank you…" Matt muttered, his mood dampened by the reminder of fairly recent events. "I'm also enjoying everything Amanda is. It's just a little rough getting used to a big famous school like this after living in a quiet place like Snowpoint."

"Totally understandable. That's why I'm going to teach you two something that'll help you communicate better and ensure you're both able to get the education this institute provides."

"What do you mean?" Matt asked in surprise.

Sutter stood up and walked around to the front of his desk. He picked up a sheet of paper and showed it to Matt. "This is Braille," he explained, gesturing to the dot patterns on it. "Amanda, you can't see what I'm showing Matt, so listen closely. This is a written language that translates the alphabet into raised bumps on printed material. It was developed by a Kalosian researcher who based it on an ancient writing system from Hoenn and Sinnoh. These days it's widely used so people like you, Amanda, can read just as well as your peers."

"I'm ready, Grandpa," Amanda said. "I wanna know all about it."

"Anything that'll help us is good," Matt agreed.

Sutter couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he put the paper down and approached his grandchildren. "You kids make this old man feel like his time's almost up, even when it isn't. Your enthusiasm makes me happy you two are my heirs."

"What do you mean?" Matt asked him.

"One day, I want you two to inherit my responsibilities and continue my work. I trust you kids to make me proud when that time comes. For now, I'll do everything I can to ensure you receive the finest education possible."

~:~

"So yeah, Sutter taught us both how to use it. Amanda really excelled in both school and social life, so it was worth it."

"Professor Chiaki really was a fine man, like the stories say," Rosalita said to herself. "I guess that's why my grandfather trusted him…"

"What?" Matt wondered, looking questioningly at Rosalita.

"I…" Rosalita froze. She hadn't intended for Matt to hear her, so when he did, it made her uncomfortable. She shifted herself around, nervously trying to decide how she should answer. Eventually, after concluding she couldn't tell him what she was thinking, she said, "Oh, I was just thinking of how he helped you and your sister get closer. Amelia, was it? She sounds like someone I'd like to meet one day. I wish I had someone like Sutter to help me patch things up with Fernando."

 _"I feel like she's not telling me something…"_ thought Sutter's grandson. Despite that, he chose not to pursue the subject. "Amanda, but don't worry about it. Let's figure out what these clues say so we can work on getting to the Golden City before Fernando does, how about that?"

Rosalita let out a sigh of relief. "Yes, let's do that."

"Alright." After returning one of the pages to Rosalita for the time being, Matt focused his attention on the one he still held. "It says… 'heart of the realm and heart of the king. Both reside within the protection of the strongest barrier. Cross not will those who seek to pierce the heart. The strongest barriers stand like a shield, an impenetrable shield to protect the realm.'"

"I think I recognize what that's referring to," Rosalita immediately said, "but read the other one first."

Matt and Rosalita exchanged the documents they each held. He started to examine the second one, but as soon as he did, he narrowed his eyes at it.

"What is it?" asked Sheena.

"This is strange. It doesn't really say much of anything." Matt turned the parchment around and held it up for the others to see. "Just 'find the hidden message' and this symbol here," he explained, pointing at a strange shape drawn on the material.

Rosalita looked down at Shaymin, then back to the clue. "It does resemble Shaymin's flower," the princess said, tracing her finger along the outline, "but without the detail. I think I remember seeing that in a book Father and Mother showed me as part of my preparation for taking the throne, but… I really don't get what message this is talking about."

"Let's put it aside for now, then," Sheena suggested.

"Good idea," Matt said in agreement. "Rosalita, about the first one…"

"Centuries ago," she interrupted, unable to wait for him to finish asking his question, "when La Ciudad Dorada was at its peak, it was protected by a huge defensive wall. The whole realm was contained within it. Once much of the kingdom was ravaged by the civil war and Regigigas' judgment, we pulled back to our current borders and abandoned what was left of the walls. They're gone now, but the fortress that acted as the base camp for our first lines of defense remains. I believe we must go there."

"Do you know where it is?" Matt asked. He presented her with the picture of the map on his laptop and requested, "Show me, please."

"It's here," said the princess, pointing to a location directly south of their current position. "There is quite a ways to go between here and there."

"You can count on me!" Eleanor chimed in. "A few more tweaks of this and a little bit of elbow grease on that, and this thing will be as good as new."

"Thank you, Eleanor." Rosalita said, smiling. Another flower sprouted from Shaymin's back in response. "We have no time to waste. Fernando could end up causing the destruction of the kingdom if he upsets Regigigas. We must stop him from causing history to repeat itself."

-:-

Meanwhile, Noel and Leon - both disheveled from their long trip out of the mine, stumbled upon the railroad tracks leading out from the mine. With the direct exit blocked, the pair were left to take their Pokémon and leave the mine the way they came before working their way back from outside.

"They ain't here no more, Sis!" Leon shouted to Noel, having rushed ahead to check the now-abandoned train. "All that time we took tryin' to dig our way out gave 'em a head start!"

"They can't have gone far," Noel bitterly said, crossing her arms. "Ain't nobody who goes that fast on foot."

"You got that right, Sis." Turning away from the train, Leon plucked three of the clockwork Poké Balls from his vest and threw them into the air. A Dusknoir and a Roserade, both collared, materialized from them alongside the Yanmega from earlier. "Go find those guys who got that Shaymin with 'em!"

Dusknoir took Roserade in his hand and rose up into the air alongside Yanmega. The two Pokémon capable of flight then split off in opposite directions, prompting Noel to activate her wrist device's projector so she could monitor their activity.

-:-

Later in the night, Sheena and Rosalita had retired to the workers' quarters of the camp for rest. The bedding supplies were long gone, but they managed to find sleeping bags to use instead. Both of them were sound asleep, as was Shaymin, who was tucked comfortably in with Rosalita. Its mind wandered into a dream, one etched deeply into the depths of the long-lived mythical Pokémon's mind.

~:~

One thing Shaymin never understood after coming to La Ciudad Dorada was how the wanderer who helped summon it didn't die of the heat. All the other people in the city dressed so lightly, Shaymin noticed, yet he never wavered from wearing his blue cloak and heavy shoulder plates. That day ages ago was no different. The blazing sun beat down on the Sacred Hill and the rest of the kingdom, yet it didn't even seem to affect him at all. He held Shaymin in his arm and gently pet it, while behind them, his Lucario and Golisopod patiently waited for their master.

Finally, the caped figure leaned down and set Shaymin on the ground. "Shaymin, I must bid you farewell now."

"Why?" the Pokémon asked. "Are you not going to stay and help lead these people, yes?"

The wanderer rose to his full height and turned away to face Lingote Palace, which was still under construction at the time. "You are the one who must keep them on the path of righteousness and wisdom. I trust in you, Shaymin. As for myself… I am but a simple nomad. From the day I arrived in this land, my fate has been to leave it… I must continue on my own way. There is something I must find, and it is not here."

"You're going to leave, and you never told me what it is you're looking for, yes…" Shaymin bitterly said.

"I apologize, but I will not burden anyone else with what I must carry." The wanderer closed his eyes. "Although, I suppose I can admit that it's a person, not a thing. I must not stop until I find them again, so I cannot stay here. This is your home, Shaymin. Continue to guide the royal family with wisdom and gratitude, so these people can continue to thrive."

~:~

The memories Shaymin dreamt of caused it to reflexively curl up even more tightly against Rosalita. Even while it was asleep, the feelings of gratitude it recalled caused flowers to sprout from its back.

-:-

Meanwhile, Matt sat outside the building, working on his laptop while his Pokémon helped keep guard. Besides Sally, Zero, Rocky, Anton and Tony, the group of six was rounded out by the presence of an Ambipom.

Matt was so focused on his work that he didn't notice Eleanor emerge from the building and approach him. "Hey," she said, making him jump in surprise.

"Oh, Eleanor, it's just you," he said with a sigh of relief when he saw her.

"What you mean it's _just_ me?" she teased him, twisting her face into an exaggerated pout.

"Sorry…" he listlessly said. "I shouldn't have said that."

"I'm not mad at you, relax." Eleanor sat down next to him and peeked over at his laptop. "Whatever you're working on must be important, if you're doing it instead of sleeping."

"It doesn't bother me, really," he admitted. "Besides, if this works out the way I hope, a lot of people will benefit. That's more important than I am."

"You shouldn't talk like that," Eleanor said to him. "You're important too, no matter what. Try to remember that."

"I appreciate that. It's just…" Matt turned away from Eleanor, preventing her from seeing his face. "I want my ideas to do some good for the world. That's the only way I can make up for what was done with them before."

"What was done with them before?" Eleanor repeated, bringing a finger to her lips. "What do you mean?"

"Well, let me answer that in reverse. Look at this." Matt tapped a few keys on the laptop and then pushed it closer to Eleanor, allowing her to see the diagrams on its screen. "The Spheres that can be dug up in Sinnoh and other places grow larger when you plant them back in the earth. As they grow, they emit energy." He traced his finger along an image of waves emanating from a spherical object to accentuate his point. "I've been working on ideas for technology that can harness that energy as a clean and cheap power source."

"That's awesome…" Eleanor murmured. She couldn't pull her eyes off the screen, and her fascination was such that she was almost salivating at the idea of it. "Wish the gadgets I come up with were this useful."

"I want it to be used to give everyone in my hometown of Snowpoint all the heat they could ever need. I love the place even despite…"

When Matt trailed off in the middle of his thought, Eleanor knew immediately that something was wrong. She looked up from the screen and tilted her head, asking him, "Despite?"

"It got so unbearable that Amanda and I rode off into a blizzard with my Rhyhorn rather than spend another day there. Needless to say, it was a stupid decision… dealing with our parents more would have probably been better than nearly dying out there in the cold. But then, dying in the cold might have been better than being saved by the founder of Team Galactic."

"Oh no..." Eleanor gasped. "Cyrus? Of all the people who could have found you guys, it was _Cyrus_?"

"He brought us to his base camp at Lake Acuity to recover." Matt's face sank as he recalled what had happened. "Back then he wasn't quite the emotionless monster the world came to know, but don't let that fool you. He only saved us because he thought he could find value in using us. At that time, everyone believed he was just a businessman who had a fascination with history. Even my grandfather was fooled… they were in the same circles back then and knew each other well enough that Cyrus helped him make the arrangements for Amanda and I to move to Rustboro in the first place. All Cyrus wanted in return was me to share my research and ideas with him."

"If I'm remembering correctly, Team Galactic's public cover was as an energy company, wasn't it?" When Matt answered her question by nodding, Eleanor raised a finger into the air. "You can't blame yourself for being tricked. Everyone thought that was what they were, so why would you think otherwise? It would only be natural for an energy company to act interested in a clean energy source."

"You don't understand," Matt said. He took off his glasses and sighed sadly. "If I just misjudged his character, I wouldn't care as much. Before anything happened I found out that he was conducting terrible experiments on people and intended to use Amanda as a subject. Sutter helped us cut ties with Cyrus and made sure we'd be safe if he sent anyone to target us, but nobody ever came. You want to know why? He already had what he wanted from me. By using my ideas and altering them to use pieces of the Veilstone City meteorites instead of Spheres, he created the system for the prototype Galactic Bomb. The one that was detonated at Lake Valor."

Eleanor was left stunned, unable to say or do anything other than look on in worry with her lips puckered. Matt didn't notice her at all. He just slammed his fist into the wall behind him.

"It's all my fault!" he seethed. "If Team Galactic was never able to create that Galactic Bomb, they would never have been able to get as close as they did to-"

Matt's anger at himself was cut off when Eleanor suddenly grabbed the sides of his face, forcing him to look directly at her.

"You listen to me," she forcefully told him. "You didn't design that machine to be used for destruction. Cyrus twisted its purpose, and you can't blame yourself for that."

"But I made it possible to-"

"It doesn't matter!" Eleanor had to take a breath before she could speak again. "Machines are neither good or bad by themselves. They can only become either depending on who they're used by. Sure, Cyrus took your idea and used it to try destroying worlds, but you designed it for a good reason. That makes it a good invention and you a good person for making it."

Matt pulled his head from Eleanor's grip, sighed once more, and put his glasses back on. "You're right. It still weighs on me, though… I want what I create to help people. It's easier to get people to understand you when you give them something for them to see your intent in." He turned back to face Eleanor again, this time voluntarily. "Words are tough sometimes, you know?"

"Yeah, I feel you on that. I never felt totally at home where I was born, the big city of Orsay in Kalos…" It was Eleanor's turn to look down at the ground. "Hundreds of thousands of people around and you don't feel like you connect with any of them. Ironic," she said with a bitter laugh. "I always felt like I belonged somewhere else, like Avignon Town, if I couldn't make it to the Azoth Kingdom and live there. Messing around with gadgets and machines, though… that makes me happy. I always felt like I understood them more than I did other people."

"They don't judge you no matter what you say or do," Matt agreed. "You're right about that."

While Matt and Eleanor conversed, Sally sensed something nearby. She lifted her head into the air and looked around, though she was unable to discern what it was that had aroused her suspicion. The Salamence turned to her fellow Pokémon and grunted to them, prompting Tony the Aggron to respond in kind. He'd had the same suspicious feeling Sally did, but like her, he was unsure of why.

In the trees some distance away, Dusknoir and Roserade were watching them, concealed by the thick cover of leaves.

-:-

"Looks like we found 'em, Bro," Noel said, observing what Dusknoir and Roserade saw through her wrist device's projection. "There's another camp not too far away from here."

"Is that so, Sis?" Leon replied. "Call 'em back, then, and let's go waste those fools."

"Nah, you know what, Bro? I got a better idea." Leaning against the train, Noel turned her hand over and extended two of her fingers, then told her brother, "Let's kick back and relax tonight. We've been through a lot today, and besides… followin' 'em is better. Those spoiled brats will lead us right to the next stop on the way to the Golden City. All we gotta do is keep on followin' 'em and then swoop in to grab up the next prize."

"Good point, Sis, I didn't think of it that way before." Leon sat down on the ground and clenched his fist. "Ya know, there's somethin' botherin' me, though. Why are we doin' all this work for that rotten prince? Dude's got everythin' he could ever want already. This job ain't fair to us no matter what he pays."

"I think I get what you're sayin', Bro… and I think I like it."

 **END of CHAPTER 3**


	5. Iron Will

This chapter will contain a scene of violence elevated a bit beyond what's happened most of the time prior to this point. It's not going to be as violent as Sutter's death in the prologue, however.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 4:** Iron Will

-:-

The next day, Eleanor drove the group to the location Rosalita pinpointed on Matt's map. Their trip was marked with lingering tension and anxiety - they all agreed that their act of collapsing the tunnel out of the mine would only serve to slow Noel and Leon down, and that the hunters would attack them again soon enough. Matt and Eleanor mostly kept to themselves during the ride, neither sure of what to say to the other after their conversation from the previous night.

The uncomfortable silence between them was broken when Eleanor moved her hands over the vehicle's control panel to bring it to a stop. "Looks like we're here," she announced to the others, snapping Matt out of the thoughts he was lost in and also interrupting the conversation between Sheena and Rosalita.

Eleanor's three passengers gathered at the side of the vehicle's flatbed, where they got their first full look at the fort they'd come to investigate. It was a structure built from gray stone, with a spacious courtyard spreading out in front of it. At its peak it was an imposing building that could almost be called a small castle, but ages of disuse left it a shell of its former self.

"It's a little different from what I was expecting," Matt remarked.

"In what way?" Rosalita asked him.

"Well…" Matt nervously scratched the back of his head. "It looks… like a fort, there's no mistaking that. I guess I just wasn't expecting it to have such a big courtyard. We can't even get close to the actual fort inside except on foot."

Without any hesitation, Rosalita climbed over the side of the flatbed and jumped down to the ground. Her shoes pressed into the soft soil, making quiet squelching sounds as she positioned herself.

"There's no time to waste," the princess declared, gazing ahead at the fort with cold determination in her green eyes. "We must be off."

"That's right, yes?" Shaymin added as it restlessly squirmed around in Rosalita's arms. "Onward, yes! Onward!"

"You've got legs," Eleanor teased the Pokémon, having disembarked the vehicle with Matt and Sheena following her.

"I've got legs but that ground is all muddy," Shaymin countered, sticking its nose in the air and frowning dramatically. "I'm the royal Pokémon of La Ciudad Dorada, yes? I must always reflect my station in life."

"If nothing else, you certainly have the _attitude_ of a noble," Matt sarcastically said.

Sheena, meanwhile, stepped up next to Rosalita and gently set a hand on the princess's shoulder. "Are you ready for this?" she asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Rosalita replied, stiffening her body even further. "There are only two of the Three Pillars left to go, and the quicker I do this, the quicker I can officially take the throne. Once that's done, I hope Fernando will come to his senses."

"I hope so too, Rosalita," Sheena said, tightening her grip in hopes of reassuring Fernando's sister. She tilted her head in the direction of Matt and Eleanor and suggested, "Let's set off, shall we?"

No objections to Sheena's proposal arose, so Rosalita marched into the fort complex and the rest of the group promptly followed. There had once been an iron gate attached to the stones, but it had long since rotted away in the many years of weather it had been left to endure. All that remained was a small amount of rusted, twisted metal protruding from the walls.

Inside the courtyard, the terrain was surprisingly rough and rugged. The fallen remains of what had once been parts of the fort, such as lookout towers, had been turned into rocky outcroppings by the passage of time that transformed the courtyard into what almost seemed like a maze. A Mismagius popped out from behind one of the piles of stones to curiously observe those who had come to visit her home. The newcomers didn't notice her, however, and they did nothing that appeared to threaten the fort. Satisfied that the quartet approaching the main building posed no danger to her or her home, the Mismagius turned and quietly slipped back into the shadows.

Much like the front gate of the complex, the wooden door that once provided entrance into the fort had was largely gone, having been consumed by the flow of time. Only a piece of the its side still remained, hanging forlornly on what remained of its frame, creaking back and forth in the wind. Rosalita carefully pushed it away and stepped into the cooler air of the fort's interior, with Matt, Eleanor and Sheena following closely behind.

Holes in the ceiling allowed rays of sunlight to shine into the fort. They glistened in the tiny streams of rainwater running down the stone walls. As the group inspected their surroundings, they found more rotting wooden doors all around them, both on the ground floor and a second floor they could reach using stairs straight ahead of them.

"Which way do you think we should go first?" Sheena wondered aloud.

"There's one way to find out." Matt reached into his bag and pulled out the puzzle box. Its presence in the fort had already triggered a reaction in the cube, and the gentle glow coming from it confirmed to the group that they had indeed followed the clue correctly. "Here goes."

Acting on a hunch, Matt turned to his left and held out the box. He pointed it both up and down, but the amount of light radiating from it did not change. His idea's unexpected failure left him to cringe in embarrassment from the judgment he imagined to be coming from the others. In an attempt to undo what he feared, he pivoted to point the box in the opposite direction, completely missing it briefly brightening when it was closer to the stairs.

Rosalita, however, did see it, and quickly tapped Matt's shoulder for his attention.

"Wait, check straight ahead again."

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise. "Oh, right."

Matt followed Rosalita's suggestion and pointed the puzzle box directly toward the staircase. Sure enough, much more light spilled out from it, as if the box were crying out to be taken to something the group could not yet see.

"That doesn't tell us that much, though," Eleanor mused. "Up the stairs? Down here in that direction?"

"It's Rosalita's trial, yes?" Shaymin piped up. The tiny Pokémon pulled itself from Rosalita's arms and jumped down onto the floor, then looked back up with an intense expression and said, "Show me you can solve this, I say! You can find the way forward as the crown princess, yes?"

"You're right. I'm the crown princess… it's up to me." Rosalita held her fist against her chest and closed her eyes. _"Last time, in the mine… we used the box to find the shrine's exact location. It guided us straight there."_

"Did you think of something?" Sheena asked Rosalita, seeing a slight shift in the princess's expression.

"Yeah, I did." Turning to Matt, Rosalita pointed forward and said, "Take the box up the stairs and see how it changes. When we found Regirock's shrine, it brought us directly to the door. There's no reason it should be any different now."

"You have a point," Matt acknowledged.

Holding the puzzle box firmly with both hands, Matt slowly advanced toward the staircase. The cube's light intensified with each step he took and by the time he reached the foot of the stairs, it was blinding. He looked back at the others, and after receiving confirmation in the form of a quick nod from Rosalita, began to ascend.

By the time he was roughly halfway up, there was an undeniable change in the puzzle box's state - but it wasn't what he had expected. It had, in fact, grown less bright.

"Wait, stop!" Rosalita called out to him. "It's got to be somewhere immediately around the base of the stairs."

"I have to agree with you on that one," Matt said as he returned to the ground floor. The puzzle box once again shined incredibly brightly, prompting Matt to laugh to himself and mumble, "It's almost like this thing's alive."

Rosalita, Sheena and Eleanor hurried over to join Matt at the stairs, and together, the quartet slowly started to walk around them in a half-circle. They quickly discovered that the further around to the right they went, the brighter the glow from the box became. Following that clue lead them to the wall below the stairs, and after a moment's hesitation, Matt held the box up to it.

A new light almost immediately began radiating from the wall, the rays merging with those given off by the cube. An intricate pattern of curved lines spread out across the stone, and the four explorers heard a loud thud as a hidden mechanism activated. They stepped back as what they believed to be a wall revealed itself to actually be a door, which slid back and revealed a narrow path heading underground.

"I knew you would be smart enough to put it together, yes," Shaymin smugly noted after plodding over to join the group.

"Hey, you're the one who knows all of this already," Eleanor pointed out. "You're cheating."

"But if I just tell you all the answers, there's no fun in that, yes?" Shaymin teased her back. "It's for the one who will take the throne to solve the mysteries, yes." Pausing, Shaymin considered what it was saying, before hastily amending its words, "Or... at least it's their responsibility to do as much as possible, given the circumstances. In _normal_ times, Rosalita would know how to read the secret messages, yes?"

"That is true," Rosalita admitted, turning her eyes downward. "I never had a chance to learn Braille from Mother and Father before Fernando killed them and started all of this…"

"That's why I'm here," Matt said, doing his best effort to shore up her confidence. He held the puzzle box into the tunnel, allowing it to illuminate the stairwell. "Let's keep going. We should be getting close to the next piece of this puzzle."

Matt's encouragement helped lift Rosalita's spirits, and she straightened up with a hint of confidence. "You're right, let's make the most of our lead."

After giving Rosalita a slight smile, Matt stepped into the tunnel and started down the steps. Rosalita picked up Shaymin and followed right after him, while Eleanor and Sheena brought up the rear. As they descended, they could hear the sound of water dripping somewhere nearby, though its precise location remained impossible to discern.

It wasn't long before the group reached the underground chamber at the bottom of the stairwell. Much like Regirock's temple in the mine, it was a plain, open chamber whose walls and floor were covered in paintings of Regigigas, Regirock, Registeel and Regice. Eleanor noticed the similarity and promptly fetched Litwick's Poké Ball from her skirt, releasing the Ghost-and-Fire-type Pokémon so she could give the group her light.

Once Litwick was perched on her shoulder, Eleanor rushed over to the wall at the far end of the shrine. "Look at this!" she called over to the others, gesturing to the facade. "There's another Braille message here."

"I expected as much." Matt stowed the box back in his bag and made his way over to join Eleanor, with Rosalita tagging along at his side.

"What does it say?" the princess asked.

"Let's see…" Matt leaned forward to look closely at the writing, again guiding himself by running his finger along the symbols. "He who wears the crown shall unlock the future for all of the kingdom. He who shall wear the crown must unlock their own future. None who fail to open their own doors shall open the doors for the people. Here lies the second of the three trials. The body of steel shall awaken only awaken for one who uses the key held by the one who brings forth gratitude."

"So it's Registeel this time," Sheena observed, having walked over to the others at the wall. "That means Regice will be last."

"Is it asking for Shaymin _this_ time?" Matt wondered, scratching his chin. "The one who brings forth gratitude. That's Shaymin, isn't it?"

"That's what you really think, yes?" Shaymin asked him. "What is the key that you think I have?"

"Well…"

"Wait, look at this," Rosalita interjected before Matt could fully answer. Her attention had been caught by a thick line painted under the Braille, and she leaned down to follow it to its end. In the floor was a strange opening cut out of a stone that was slightly higher up than those around it. None of the others had seen the hole until Rosalita pointed it out. "You know what I think? This message wants an actual key of some sort."

"What about the part about 'the one who brings forth gratitude,' though?" Matt asked. "We don't really have that much of a lead on where this key is."

"Let's split up and search the fort, first," Rosalita proposed. "I think it should be somewhere in here, whatever it is. Nobody who served at this fort could have used it without the puzzle box, so it would be safe to have it here."

"That's a good idea," Sheena said in agreement. "I'll go with you, Rosalita."

"So Matt and I will do the other half," Eleanor confirmed. "Sounds like that'll work."

-:-

Lingote Palace's bunker-like hangar was located at the back of the castle, built partially into the Sacred Hill. It served only one purpose - housing the kingdom's skyship, the personal craft of the royal family. In ages past, the Arcane Science-powered vessel had been used by previous generations simply to survey the kingdom they led, but those days were far behind it. For over a century, the skyship had been left resting in the hangar. Recent kings had chosen to save it for use in defending the kingdom, even though they prayed such a time would never come to pass. For this reason, engineers and technicians in the employ of the royal family kept it in perfect condition even though it wasn't being used.

Or at least that was how things were until Fernando VIII decided he wanted to use it.

The count stood alongside his elderly defense minister, clutching the staff containing the glowing orb. A group of the minister's subordinates were going in and out of the dormant skyship while the pair watched, some bringing supplies into it and others carrying tools to inspect the craft.

"Count Fernando, sir…" the minister quietly said to the young man next to him, "I understand what you said, but I can't help but ask again… are you really sure about launching it?"

Fernando grinned, but he did not shift his eyes away from overseeing the skyship's preparation. "Yes. What exactly has you worried about the idea?"

"I'm thinking about our history, to be honest." The minister missed the sarcasm underpinning Fernando's seemingly friendly question, so he answered completely seriously. "I worry about the possibility that by launching the skyship, we will cause a series of events that will lead to another civil war and to Regigigas awakening once again."

"And you fear that like in ancient times, that should Regigigas reawaken, all of La Ciudad Dorada will be destroyed yet again?" Fernando guessed, though he really was just humoring the minister by acting like he didn't know the answer.

"That's correct, sir."

The minister's naive sincerity left Fernando unable to suppress a laugh, but he quickly apologized. "I'm sorry. I can't blame you for that concern with Rosalita out there… and it is valid to think that we won't be able to stop Regigigas from destroying the kingdom completely, given that Rosalita is still out there with Shaymin. That's how the picture looks to you right now, right?"

"Again, correct, sir," answered the minister, bowing his head.

This got Fernando to turn to face the old man. "That makes sense considering what you know," he said, tapping the bottom of his staff against the floor. "But what you don't know is that with the powers of Arcane Science, I've developed a special defense mechanism in my workshop for just that occasion. Should Regigigas return, I will be ready to protect La Ciudad Dorada from its judgment."

The minister drew in an uncomfortable breath. "I would like to say that your words alleviate all my fears, Count Fernando. Just the possibility of Regigigas awakening worries me, though. Even if we have a defense."

"Again, I understand what has you nervous. All I can tell you is that once that secret weapon I developed is loaded onto the skyship, it'll be ready to deploy the second we need it."

-:-

"Are you alright?"

Eleanor's question came right as she and Matt entered the fort's armory. He'd been very reserved since the two groups split up to carry out their search, and it concerned her. Not only that, but he knew he was acting withdrawn, so her words cut him to the bone despite being so simple and direct.

A shiver ran through his body, and as he approached the suits of armor in the room, he said to her, "Look around here carefully. There are a lot of places where a key could be hidden."

Annoyed by the way Matt completely ignored her question, Eleanor disregarded his instruction and planted herself firmly where she was standing. "I'm not letting you get off that easily!" she snapped, losing control over the volume of her voice for a moment before calming herself. "You're not okay, I can tell. It's clear as day."

Matt paused. "You're right… I'm sorry." He placed his hand on the suit of armor he was looking at, but did not turn around. "I'm a fish out of water here. It's always just been Amanda and I, and that's all I've ever needed. I'm not used to having this much of a group around me."

"Didn't you have friends back in Rustboro?"

"A couple," he replied while he took off the armor's helmet and examined it. "But none of them were particularly close friends, really. Well, Cassy's been there a lot, but besides her they haven't been that close to me. Amanda was always the more social one between us."

Matt paid no mind to the fact that Eleanor said nothing more, and simply continued to look over

the helmet's interior. He froze, however, when she stepped up right behind him and wrapped her arms around him.

"If it makes you feel any better," she said, "I've always been an outcast, too. Like I told you last night, there were hundreds of thousands of people around me in Orsay City and I never felt like I could connect with any of them. You're not alone."

"I know I'm not. It's just weird to me."

"You'll get used to it," Eleanor told him, releasing her grip and smiling at him when he turned to face her. She then pointed at the suits of armor behind him, arranged neatly into two rows. "So how about we check them out now?"

"Good idea," he said, returning her smile.

The pair set about checking the suits of armor, each taking one row. Matt decided to go over the left side of the room, while Eleanor went to the right.

A few minutes passed, and Eleanor had just finished inspecting her second suit of armor before a thought popped into her head. "Hey, Matt?" she called over to him. "What did the clue say about the key again?"

"The body of steel shall awaken only awaken for one who uses the key held by the one who brings forth gratitude," Matt recalled. "Why did you ask?"

"You're certain it said 'held by the one who brings forth gratitude,' right?"

"The Braille text directly said that, yes," he explained. "It's a different form of written language, but the symbols translate into ordinary letters. The ones used here do, at least."

"So if it's taken literally, 'held by the one who brings forth gratitude' would mean that the key is in the hand of the one we're looking for," Eleanor deduced. She glanced down the entire row of armor on her side and observed, "But all of these are just holding swords."

"Same on my side," Matt confirmed. "Not only that, they all look the same. I'd say that means we can rule them all out, since if one sword opened that lock they all would."

"You're right on that one," Eleanor said as she made her way toward the back of the armory. She glanced at every single suit of armor she passed, but all of them matched each other. "I feel like we're in the right place, but-"

A gasp slipped from Eleanor's mouth when she saw what was right in front of her. She ran straight for it, leaving Matt confused as he tried to catch up.

"Eleanor, what's wrong?" he asked her, feeling a rising sense of panic. At that point he couldn't yet see what had so captured her attention, but as soon as he reached the far end of the lengthy room, he spotted it and immediately understood.

Eleanor was there looking closely at a statue on a slightly elevated platform. Though it wasn't a suit of armor, it was shaped from metal, giving it the appearance of one. The only actual armor on the statue were heavy, broad plates on its shoulders.

"The wanderer who helped found the kingdom," Matt uttered in surprise.

"Yeah, and remember what the message wanted us to find?" Eleanor pulled her face away from the statue and jabbed a finger into the air. "'The key held by the one who brings forth gratitude.' He's the one who helped bring forth Shaymin, the Gardener of Gratitude."

"So then…" Matt quickly turned his attention to the statue's right hand, which was resting on a scabbard attached to its waist. "That's got to be it. Help me get this out."

"You got it, chief," Eleanor replied, playfully saluting.

Matt and Eleanor started working the statue's hand away from the sword, taking great care to avoid damaging it. As it turned out, the statue's arm was built with joints at the shoulder and elbow, making their task much easier. They were able to raise it up into the air with little trouble.

"This is probably going to be the hard part," Matt said as he inspected the sword. "The last thing we want to do is knock it over. Can you hold the statue in place while I get the sword out?"

"Yeah, I got that."

Eleanor stepped up and braced the statue by pushing against its shoulders. At the same time, Matt firmly gripped the sword's hilt and carefully pulled on it. Much to his surprise, it came out of the scabbard far more easily than he anticipated, leaving him to stumble and fall backward. The sword dropped to the floor next to him, sending a metallic crash echoing through the room.

Eleanor jumped down from the statue stand and said, "You alright?" She offered a hand to help him up and added, "Looks like we almost had a Matt-kebab there."

"Don't joke about that, it was a little too close for comfort." Matt took Eleanor's hand, but before he stood up he collected the sword with the other. He held the blade up once he was back on his feet so they both could get a better look at it. Unlike the swords issued to the suits of armor, it was thicker and heavier. "It must have taken a lot of strength to use this, if the replica's any indication."

"Who says it's a replica?" Eleanor pointed out.

"I suppose that's true," Matt admitted. "Either way, though, I'm guessing this is our key."

"I'm sure it is," Eleanor agreed. "Let's show it to Rosalita."

With the sword in hand, Matt and Eleanor made their way back past the suits of armor and exited into the fort's mezzanine. From over the railing they could see Sheena and Rosalita waiting at the foot of the stairs with Shaymin, seemingly empty handed.

"You guys!" Eleanor called down to them as she walked. "We found something!"

"I hope you did, because we came up empty," Sheena replied. By that point Matt and Eleanor had reached the stairs and were descending. "Nothing notable except a wardrobe with surprisingly intact clothes. If you call that notable."

"What's that?" Rosalita inquired, having noticed the sword in Matt's hand.

"We found it in the armory," he explained, showing the blade to Rosalita and Sheena as soon as he left the stairs. "There was a metal statue of the wanderer there, and he had it."

"'The key held by the one who brings forth gratitude,'" Rosalita recalled. "That makes perfect sense!"

"You should be the one to use it," Matt said, offering the sword to Rosalita with both hands. "It's your trial, after all. Besides, I can't hold it and record everything at the same time."

Rosalita started to reach for the weapon, but before she took it, she hesitated. The symbolic weight of the action was not lost on her. Her breathing grew shallow, and she stared at the blade. _"Once I commit to this, there really is no going back… everything I've known will change. My life will never be the same again once this is over…"_ The more she thought about the responsibilities she had to take on, however, the more confident she began to feel. _"No, I can't feel sorry for myself! My people need me to lead!"_

Having regained her composure, Rosalita accepted the sword from Matt and bowed her head in a modest gesture of gratitude. Shaymin padded up next to her and raised its tiny head into the air, focusing squarely on the princess towering over it.

"You truly understand what it means to lead the kingdom, yes," the mythical Pokémon said, shaking its head back and forth. "I can tell, yes? That's how I knew you were the right choice. When you live as long as I have, you often know what's right, yes."

"Why doesn't it surprise me that you'd say that?" Matt sarcastically asked Shaymin.

"Because you know more than you think," replied the Pokémon. "You are the professor's grandson, after all, yes? It's only fitting that you'd understand me, you."

Matt furrowed his brow, puzzled by Shaymin's words. "Why would me being Sutter's grandson make me understand you?"

"And here I am noticing that Land Forme Shaymin just ended a sentence with 'you' for some reason," Eleanor added, flicking her hand open.

"Hey, you're right," Rosalita realized. Turning down to Shaymin, she said, "It's hard for me to remember a time you've done that before."

"I can say whatever I want whenever I want, yes." Shaymin raised its nose into the air. "That's my privilege after so many years serving the royal family."

"Nobody can argue with you there," Rosalita replied, laughing slightly. "I think I'm about ready to face the trial now. Eleanor, if you please, would you lead the way with Litwick's light?"

"You got it, Rosa." Eleanor fetched Litwick's Poké Ball from her skirt and opened it while pointing it at her shoulder, allowing the candle Pokémon to materialize there. She scratched Litwick's cheek, earning a squeak of pleasure from her, then asked, "Litwick, would you light the way for me, please?"

"Wick!" the Ghost-and-Fire-type Pokémon happily replied.

With that, Eleanor walked over and entered the tunnel underneath the staircase, Litwick's flame illuminating the narrow space. Rosalita followed after her, carrying the sword firmly in her grip while Shaymin stayed closely at her side. Matt and Sheena went last, the former with his laptop out and recording everything once again. Before long, the quartet was once again before the wall where the Braille puzzle was left ages ago.

Rosalita stepped forward and, after looking back to make sure Matt was recording, held the sword up. "How fitting," she said to the others. "There was a great king who once pulled a sword from a stone. Now I'm here putting a sword _into_ a stone. Here goes nothing."

The princess's first motion was a tentative one. She pointed the sword downward and carefully lowered it toward the opening in the floor. After tapping it against the stones a few times to feel out the best way to proceed, she gathered her strength and jammed it into the opening as far as it would go.

The moment the sword hit the bottom of the slot, bright light burst back out. Rosalita stepped back in surprise and nearly slipped, but Sheena caught her from behind. A line of light traced along the floor from the opening and back up the wall with the Braille on it. It split and filled the wall with an elaborate pattern before the piece with the message pulled back and slid away, revealing a passage heading further underground.

"This is it," Rosalita cautiously said, taking a Poké Ball out from her cloak.

"You know who you will fight with, yes?" Shaymin asked as it scurried into the passage alongside the humans.

"Of course," answered the princess. "Adiela and Deivi are well suited for Registeel."

"You planned this out in advance?"

Rosalita nodded to Sheena. "Every heir must face the trials of the Three Pillars to take the throne. I would be failing my predecessors to not be prepared."

"I'm proud of you, then," Sheena said with a warm smile. "You're more ready to be a leader than I think you realize."

"Thank you. I feel better hearing that."

The passage ultimately led to a cavern illuminated by a source none of the group could see. As they fanned out, they found that even though the cave was spacious enough, there were few places they could actually go with any ease. The plateau right in front of them was surrounded by jagged ledges on all sides.

"I don't think Sally could fly in here," Matt observed. "The mine was tough enough and this place is even worse."

"Same for Reyes," Rosalita concurred. When she glanced back to talk to Matt, though, she spotted a familiar glow in his bag. "Matt, the puzzle box!"

Matt hadn't noticed the glow, so when Rosalita pointed it out, he fumbled to hand his laptop to Eleanor and retrieve the cube. Its shining only continued to intensify, prompting Eleanor to slip on her goggles and lick her lips in anticipation of the battle to come. Matt and Sheena averted their eyes while Rosalita stared squarely at the light until it erupted into a flash that filled the cave.

Much to the quartet's surprise, the box immediately ceased glowing afterward.

"What happened?" Sheena wondered.

The answer to the priestess's question came not from any of her companions, be they human or Pokémon. It instead came in the form of heavy, stomping footsteps and a bizarre robotic gurgling that sounded throughout the cave.

"Prepare yourself," Shaymin warned Rosalita. "She is here, yes?"

Matt took his laptop back and pointed it in the direction of the stomping, but then paused and said, "She?"

There was no time to address Matt's confusion, for the bulbous, silver body of Registeel loomed into view on one of the cliffs overlooking their position. It jumped down onto the plateau, flailing its black arms and gurgling all the while. After landing with a great crash, it turned using its cylindrical legs to face Rosalita.

"Registeel, you probably know who I am already." Rosalita's body stiffened as her focus from her previous battle returned. "As the crown princess of La Ciudad Dorada, I challenge you!"

"Steel," it said in its strange voice, accepting the princess's challenge. It waved its hand towards itself while the seven dots on its face flashed, urging her on.

Registeel's invitation prompted Rosalita to throw the Poké Ball she had ready. It burst open in an unusual flare of vivid, sparkling light, revealing a Shiftry whose appearance caught Matt, Eleanor and Sheena by surprise. Instead of the green color most Shiftry had, Rosalita's was red with an off-white mane running across his face and down his back.

"A shiny one?" Matt breathlessly uttered. "I didn't expect that."

In response to Deivi's appearance, Registeel stared at him and repeatedly stuttered the first part of its name while its dots blinked. It then stomped its feet into the ground and unleashed a mechanical roar, causing an intense red aura to surround its body.

"What's that?" Eleanor inquired.

Sheena didn't say anything right away. Instead, she clasped her hands together and brought her thoughts into sync with Registeel's. "It called upon Gaia's power to strengthen itself for combat," she revealed. "Makes sense that they could tap into Gaia, since they're the elements given life."

"Regirock didn't do this, though…" Rosalita realized. "This is the second of the Three Pillars. It's making it tougher for me to pass…" The princess clenched her fist as she regarded the titan with determination in her eyes. "But I won't be defeated now. Not after coming this far. Deivi, start off with Low Kick!"

The Shiftry ran at his opponent, showing great agility despite having to balance on his narrow, peg-like feet. Registeel flashed its lights and then pulled its arms back to form a Focus Blast between them. However, just as it went to throw the glowing sphere, Deivi dropped into a slide, allowing Registeel's attack to fly harmlessly over him. His foot collided with Registeel's leg, causing the legendary Pokémon to fall over.

Deivi leaped away from Registeel while it groaned and pushed itself back onto its feet. Rosalita braced herself, expecting to need a response to Registeel's next form of offense, but no attack came. Instead, Registeel lurched back, once more pointing its face toward the ceiling. It gurgled and beeped while its dots flashed, then roared with all seven dots turning bright red.

From elsewhere in the cavern, the voice of another Pokémon made itself known. Its owner quickly revealed itself as a Xatu, who glided over the plateau before deftly landing to stand alongside the titan who summoned her.

"An ally Pokémon?" Sheena said, bringing her hand to her mouth. "Now that's a real surprise."

"The humans of La Ciudad Dorada live lives based on the gratitude they feel for what they can give each other," Shaymin told her. "It's only natural that its Pokémon feel the same way, yes?"

Rosalita, meanwhile regarded this development with a sense of silent tension. She knew Shaymin's point well, but she hadn't factored in the possibility of Registeel calling for help from something like a Xatu.

" _I've got to be careful,"_ she thought, a bead of sweat rolling down her face. _"If I knew a Flying-type would come, I'd have started with Adiela instead. But I can't feel any doubt now, and besides, this might still work."_ Sweeping her hand in front of herself, Rosalita commanded, "Deivi, use Dark Pulse on Xatu!"

The Shiftry brought his leafy hands together, forming a cluster of black energy rings between them. Xatu fearlessly faced the oncoming dark vortex, opting to raise her wings up instead of escaping. At the same time that Dark Pulse threw Xatu back, a gust of wind started to blow from behind her and Registeel. Harnessing this wind, Registeel effortlessly glided at Deivi while its body gleamed with a metallic glow.

"Tailwind!" Rosalita gasped, barely able to react before the impact of Registeel's Iron Head sent Deivi crashing into a rock. She tensed up, bracing herself by moving her left leg back, then tersely noted, "That'll make Registeel more agile than Regirock was…"

Xatu was busy, meanwhile. She swayed her wings from side to side and calmly chanted. Her dance caused dark clouds to materialize over the plateau, which soon brought rain. Sheena touched her cheek when the first drop landed on it, then looked at the damp spot on her hand.

"Rain Dance…" she said, blinking. "That's useful for Registeel's ally Pokémon to know."

"You!" As the rain grew steady, Shaymin lunged into Sheena's arms. "Keep me dry!" it told her while burying itself.

"You're really in quite the mood today, aren't you?" joked Eleanor.

"I'm not a plant, yes?!" Shaymin was indignant. Evidently, Eleanor's attempt at humor hadn't landed. "I don't want to get all soggy!"

"It's fine," Sheena assured the Pokémon, bringing one of her arms over it. "I'll keep you dry."

"Thank you. I like you, yes?"

Sheena didn't answer, but she didn't need to. Shaymin knew how she felt from the fact that several flowers sprouted out of its back as it nestled in her arms.

Rosalita, meanwhile, had remained focused on her battle. Deivi and Registeel were rushing each other, the latter able to better match the former's pace thanks to Tailwind. Low Kick met Iron Head, and both combatants were launched back from each other. Xatu, had been hanging back and gathering up energy, and chose that moment to unleash an orange-and-gold aura that formed the shape of a phoenix around her. When she shot forward and collided with Deivi, the aura exploded, leaving the Shiftry sprawled out unconscious on the ground, covered in burn marks from the intense energy.

"Sky Attack," Matt said in awe.

"Deivi, I'm sorry," Rosalita apologized while sending her Shiftry back to the shelter of his Poké Ball. Once he had been recalled, she lowered her head. _"I should have known better and prepared for something like this,"_ she thought. _"I can learn from it now, though. Adiela won't do well in the rain. That means I might need to put Registeel aside for now and focus on Xatu… and I think I know the best way to do that."_

Reaching into her cloak, the princess removed and threw another of her Poké Balls. Her Luxray, Isabel, emerged from the sphere and roared.

Rosalita wasted no time in issuing her next order. "Isabel, Xatu's your target! Strike with Thunderbolt!"

All three Pokémon on the plateau started moving at the same time. While Isabel's mane crackled with her electricity, Xatu started gathering energy in preparation for another Sky Attack. Registeel, well aware of Rosalita and Isabel's intent, called forth its own electrical energy. Isabel's Thunderbolt and Registeel's Thunder cast dramatic flash upon the battle as they forked through the rain-filled air. When they met, their respective powers were largely nullified by the resulting explosion. Enough of Thunder remained, however, to continue on and hit Isabel, though it had little effect.

What Registeel had done wasn't lost on Rosalita. "So it will run interference to protect Xatu," she said to herself. "If that's the case, we'll need to fight up close, Isabel. Go in for a Throat Chop!"

A purple, flame-like aura engulfed Isabel's front right paw as she darted at Xatu, who met her charge head-on with Sky Attack. Despite the great force of Xatu's dive, Isabel was able to overwhelm her. With the Psychic-and-Flying-type stunned, Isabel took the opportunity to drive her glowing paw directly into Xatu's neck.

"Follow that with Thunderbolt!" Rosalita cried out.

Since she was already on top of Xatu, all Isabel had to do was discharge electricity from her body. The strength of her Thunderbolt was such that it propelled her away from Xatu. Registeel's ally was left lying still on the ground, weakly twitching and unable to continue fighting.

"Perfect!" exclaimed the princess, clapping her hands together. "Now to deal with Registeel…"

Rosalita looked around, then froze. Registeel was nowhere in sight. It was as if the titan had simply vanished into thin air.

"Did any of you see where Registeel went?" Rosalita called to Matt, Eleanor and Sheena. She could feel her skin crawling from how nervous she was.

Before she could get an answer, Registeel's robotic gurgling emerged from above them. The quartet hastily turned to find the source of the noise, only to discover Registeel lumbering toward the edge of the cliff overlooking Isabel's position.

"How did it get up there?" Rosalita wondered before shaking her head. "Isabel, get out of there, hurry!"

Before the Luxray could react, Registeel simply stepped over the precipice. The metallic shine of Iron Head surrounded it as it fell, and Isabel was too caught by surprise to react. Registeel plummeted straight into her, landing with a loud crash.

"Isabel! Are you okay?!"

The answer to Rosalita's plea came in the form of a Thunderbolt that erupted from beneath Registeel as the titan stood back up. It reeled back, making mechanical spitting noises while the shock worked through its body. Isabel emerged from the hole created by Iron Head just as Xatu's earlier Tailwind petered out.

"Have you got anything left, Isabel?" Before Rosalita even finished asking her question, Isabel had lowered herself and begun growling at Registeel. "Thank you," the princess said with a smile. "Let's go all out one last time. Superpower!"

After returning Rosalita's smile, Isabel tensed all the muscles in her body, giving herself a somewhat swollen appearance. She sprang at Registeel and tackled the titan hard enough to force its heavy iron body back through the dirt. The legendary Pokémon reacted by spinning its left arm in a full circle, allowing a black light to form the shape of a claw around it before crashing it down into Isabel's head.

Isabel didn't faint from the blow, but she did stumble away from Registeel. Rosalita already had the Luxray's Poké Ball ready to recall her, and pointed it at Isabel as the two Pokémon separated. "That was good, Isabel," Rosalita thanked her once she was pulled back into the sphere. Before she could move on to her next combatant, the rain tapered off and the clouds hanging over the cave cleared up. _"I lost track of that…"_ the princess thought to herself. _"I don't know if I'm confident enough to send Adiela in just yet, though, even with the rain gone. I think I need to work it down a little more first…"_

Rosalita had her hand on one Poké Ball within her cloak, but moved away from it and threw another instead. Her Leavanny, Elena, materialized from it and yawned.

As soon as he saw the Bug-and-Grass-type Pokémon, Matt shivered. Even with her attention safely diverted in battle, his memories of the way Elena had strung him, Eleanor and Sheena up at the mine sent a subconscious chill down his spine.

Shaymin noticed his reaction. Poking its head out from Sheena's arms, it said to him, "Rosalita knows what she's doing with Leavanny, yes? I think you've experienced that yourself."

"Stop reminding me," Matt sighed, tightening his grip on his laptop.

"Elena," Rosalita said to her Pokémon, "we're just weakening Registeel up a bit, alright? There's not much we need to do."

"Va," replied Elena.

"Glad to hear it!" Rosalita exclaimed. She snapped her fingers, pointed at Registeel and said, "Hit it with Throat Chop!"

The same flaming purple aura that surrounded Isabel's paw earlier flared to life around Elena's leafy arms. Moving deftly on her spindly legs, she closed the distance between herself and Registeel in the blink of an eye and struck the titan squarely in the face. Registeel shuddered and beeped, its dots flashing rhythmically. It tried to grab Elena, but she slipped between its arms, flipped over its head, and delivered another chop directly to its back.

By that point, Registeel's beeping and gurgling had turned plainly angry and its movements became wild and aggressive. Instead of trying to aim for Elena, it spun around in place, wildly flailing its arms. One of its Shadow Claw attacks caught Elena in the cheek, knocking her down and stunning her. Registeel then lumbered over and picked her up. Trapped in the titan's grip, Elena thrashed around but couldn't get away from the Focus Blast Registeel formed around her. The pulsating orb exploded almost instantly upon taking shape, throwing Elena through the air toward her trainer.

"This is getting to be rougher than I expected," Rosalita fretted as she watched her Leavanny stand back up. "Elena, I'm sorry. Can you use String Shot to hold Registeel down?"

Registeel already had its arms pulled back and a new Focus Blast forming between them. Just when it pulled back in preparation to fling the orb, however, Elena spit several wads of sticky silk at it. One of them hit Registeel in the face, while two more caught its arms, adhering them to the ground. The air in the cave filled with the sounds of Registeel gurgling and grunting angrily while it struggled against its bonds, which had it held leaning back at an awkward angle.

"Well done, Elena. You can rest now."

Rosalita held up a Poké Ball, allowing a red beam of light emerged from it and contacted Elena, pulling her back into the sphere. Right before transforming back into energy, she exhaled and relaxed.

"You're almost there," Sheena said in encouragement, earning a tired but glowing smile from the princess. "You can do this."

"I can do this," Rosalita repeated. She gazed at her reflection in the surface of the new Poké Ball in her hand, fidgeting it around instead of throwing it. "After this, only Regice remains, she reminded herself. "Then we're free from what this has caused… I'll endure anything if it means I can get those days back again."

Having firmed up her resolve, Rosalita finally pulled her arm back and tossed the ball toward the still-struggling Registeel. When it burst open, the lithe, majestic form of a Rapidash appeared from within. She pawed at the ground and neighed fiercely, the flames on her head, back and legs blazing in a magnificent display of power.

"Wow, impressive," Matt said, making sure to focus his laptop's camera at the equine Pokémon. "I've seen plenty of Rapidash before, but this one… it stands out."

"That the Adiela you mentioned before?" Eleanor asked.

"She is," Rosalita proudly told the others. "My very first Pokémon…" Turning back to Registeel, who was still struggling against the binding effect of String Shot, the princess added, "But I'll have to tell you about her another time. Adiela, let's pass this trial. Use Flame Charge!"

Adiela neighed again and lowered her head, pointing her horn in Registeel's direction. While she galloped at the titan, her flames fused together to form a cloak of fire around her body. Registeel groaned loudly when she collided with it, but that groan swiftly morphed into a vicious growl as electricity sparked around it. Adiela was unable to escape the Thunder attack it soon unleashed.

"Adiela, I know it's rough but I also know you can handle it!" Rosalita told her Rapidash, who was bucking around and snorting while the electricity coursed through her body. Hearing these words of confidence calmed the Fire-type, and the confident grace she initially projected returned. Rosalita happily said to Adiela, "Very good. We're close now, so keep using Flame Charge again and again."

Every time Adiela's flame-cloaked form made contact with Registeel, her subsequent movements grew faster. This didn't matter much when it came to her reaching the still-bound titan. Where it made a difference was instead in Adiela's ability to evade the Thunder attacks Registeel countered with. Bolt after bolt split the air, but Adiela deftly danced around them until she saw an opening for her next strike.

While Rosalita watched her Rapidash's lithe motions, she found herself falling into a memory from her childhood.

It was the day their parents had taken Rosalita and Fernando out of the palace to see their city up close for the first time. The royal family possessed a personal carriage for their trips into La Ciudad Dorada, pulled by a pair of Rapidash that their servants trained. Rosalita, then only a few years old, fell in love with them at first sight. She admired the serene yet powerful beauty they projected. By the time she was in the carriage with her parents and brother, her heart was already set on having a Rapidash of her own, a wish soon fulfilled when Sophia gifted her a Ponyta she named Adiela.

A bolt of electricity shot close by Rosalita, snapping her back to the present as a gust blew through her billowing hair. Adiela was literally running rings around Registeel, who kept fruitlessly lashing out with Thunder. Its growling had grown weak, and the flashing of its dots dramatically slowed.

"Adiela, use Flame Charge one more time," she called out, "but aim for the strings!"

As soon as Registeel's electric barrage ceased, Adiela moved in once more. The opening was brief, but it was more than enough for her to ignite the threads Elena left behind. Registeel, trapped at the center of the inferno, could do nothing but groan and flail once the string burned away.

Adiela backed away and warily observed Registeel's actions. Behind her, Rosalita, Matt, Eleanor and Sheena did the same. The titan's thrashing eventually did dispel the flames, but it could only take one step forward before gurgling out its name a final time before falling face-first into the dirt.

"We did it!" Rosalita beamed. She couldn't stop herself from jumping into the air before running to embrace Adiela, who whinnied proudly. When she heard the others approaching her, though, her face flushed. "I mean, that's the second one down…"

"Just because you're a crown princess doesn't mean you have to always act like one," Sheena said with a smile. "Feel free to let yourself enjoy things."

Sheena's encouragement was all Rosalita needed to relax and embrace her Rapidash again. Meanwhile, from its place in Sheena's arms, Shaymin indignantly piped up, "I'm the one who's guiding the princess, yes? Don't try to make me obsolete!"

"Don't worry, Shaymin, nobody can replace you," Sheena told it while stroking its back.

"That's right, yes," it replied, snuggling back into Sheena's arms and sprouting several flowers.

"Did you get all of that?" Rosalita asked Matt, gesturing to his laptop.

"Every second. Don't you worry, I'm making sure I get as complete a record as possible."

"Thank you." The princess put her hand on her heart and curtsied. "It's very important to me that this custom be recorded. One of my goals for when I am queen is to help the world better understand us. They can't truly know without seeing for themselves."

"I hear you on that," Matt agreed. "I think that was what drove Sutter, too. He had a thirst for learning about other cultures. I'm sure that's why he came here." Turning to Sheena, he added, "That's why he studied the Tenganists, too."

"You're gonna be a great queen, Rosa," Eleanor cheerfully said, throwing her arm around the princess's shoulder. "Don't forget about me when you make it."

"I won't forget any of you," promised Rosalita. "You've stood by me this far, and that's already more than I could ever have asked for."

"Ah, look at that!" Sheena intervened, pointing the others' attention over to Registeel.

The titan was emitting a gentle golden light, and right as Matt pointed his laptop at it, the puzzle box emerged from his bag and floated into the air. "It's like what happened with Regirock," he realized as the rays of light joined Registeel and the box together.

" _A body of steel."_ Much like what had happened in the mine, an unfamiliar voice addressed the group, speaking into their minds like it was coming from everywhere at once. This one was feminine and youthful but authoritative, lacking the rough edge that defined the voice they heard before. _"To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

"So that's why Shaymin called Registeel a she." Matt turned his head back and forth as if he was searching for the source of the voice, even as he knew very well he wasn't going to find it. His focus returned to Registeel just in time for him to see it dissolve away and the puzzle box fall to the ground.

"Did it change?" Rosalita asked him as he picked the cube up. Instead of answering, he held the box up and turned it, revealing that the sides marked with Registeel's dot patterns were now glowing as well. "That seals it, then. Two down, and only Regice to go."

"But if you recall, we never solved the third clue," Eleanor pointed out.

"That's true," Matt realized. "We never got beyond it talking about a hidden message and showing a symbol that looked like Shaymin's flower."

"Surely you can solve that riddle, yes?" Shaymin said, leaping out of Sheena's arms. "You have the professor's blood in you, after all."

"That doesn't mean I know all the things he knew."

"I don't know if you need to worry about it, actually…" Eleanor interjected. She was staring off in the direction where Registeel had been, and removed her goggles so she could squint at something she spotted on the stone wall at the far end of the plateau. "I think I found that hidden message."

The engineer made her way across Registeel's battlefield, and her friends followed. Her vision hadn't failed her. By the time the group clustered around the wall, they all could see that it was covered in Braille, but not only that, there was a familiar symbol on it.

"There's that mark again," Sheena pointed out, running her hand over the featureless caricature of Shaymin's flower. "You're right, Eleanor. This must be what that third clue was referring to."

"I knew you would solve the riddle, yes," Shaymin remarked, proudly strutting up behind the humans.

"You said Matt would solve it," Eleanor said to the Pokémon, "not me."

"But Shaymin also didn't say there was only one riddle." Matt's eyes were locked on to the writing before him, but the longer he examined it, the more visibly confused he grew. "This doesn't make any sense. The text is all garbled."

"What do you mean?" Rosalita asked him.

"It's just a jumble of letters," he elaborated, "a big incoherent mess. It's not accidental, though. Whoever created this message clearly intended to write exactly these characters."

Sheena turned to Rosalita and said, "Didn't you say you saw the symbol in a book your parents showed you?"

"I did, but like I said, I don't really get what it means."

"I have an idea," Matt declared. While hastily typing commands into his laptop, he explained, "There's a possibility this might be some kind of code, and if that's the case, perhaps the book you remember is the key to breaking it. I'm going to call Cassy and see if she's found it." He set his laptop down on a nearby stone and reached into his bag, fetching a pair of small, transparent bottles. Each one contained an herb with gnarled green leaves floating in liquid. "Give these to the Pokémon who battled Registeel," he instructed Rosalita as he handed the bottles over to her. "They're bitter but there's not much out there that revitalizes Pokémon better."

"Revival Herbs…" she said, recognizing the plants. "You carry them around everywhere?"

"They stay good for a long time if you buy them from people who properly preserve them," Matt explained. "I learned that they're good to have on my trips with my grandfather, when a Pokémon Center isn't always nearby."

"Good idea, and a lucky one considering we don't have a Pokémon Center in La Ciudad Dorada." Rosalita stashed the bottles away in her cloak, freeing up her hands so she could get the Poké Balls containing Deivi, Isabel, Elena and Adiela out. The four Pokémon materialized before her in flashes of light, Deivi's a bit more dazzling than the others. "Matt gave me some Revival Herbs for you all," she told them as she retrieved the bottles.

Matt, Eleanor and Sheena, meanwhile, clustered around his laptop. One window on its screen contained the camera footage of the message on the wall, while a second window showed a rotating wheel against a flat gray background. That image soon disappeared to make room for a direct video link to Cassy in Lingote Palace's archive.

"Did something happen?" she immediately asked Matt, skipping past any sort of greeting. "What went wrong?"

"Nothing went wrong," he replied, "there's nothing for you to worry about." Cassy visibly relaxed, and Matt continued, "We've found two of the three points on the road to the Golden City, but neither Rosalita or I can solve the third clue."

" _Neither Rosalita or I? Is that why he warned me that Fernando was the dangerous one?"_ Cassy stiffened again but did not otherwise let on that she'd caught Matt's mention of Fernando's sister. "What exactly is stopping you from solving it?" she asked instead.

"Here, have a look." With the click of a few keys, Matt brought the image of the message up so Cassy could see it.

"It's Braille," she said, furrowing her brow. "I'm not the one who can read it, you are."

"The problem is that it doesn't form anything coherent. It's just a mess of random letters."

"I'm not sure what you're asking me to do." Cassy leaned over, propping her head up with her hand.

"I want you to see this symbol." More taps on the keyboard made the camera zoom in on the flowery shape. "Rosalita says she saw this in a book her parents showed her, but she can't remember what its meaning was. Have you-"

"I did!" Cassy exclaimed, her bored manner giving way to the more passionate side that knowledge often brought out in her. She moved out of sight for a moment, and the only sign of what she was doing was the sound of her fumbling with the books that surrounded her. When she returned, she held one particular tome in her hand. She held it up to the camera, showing off that it had the same symbol on its red, leathery cover.

"That's the book!" Rosalita said, having returned to the group after giving her Pokémon the Revival Herbs.

Cassy pulled the volume away and started flipping through it. "It's a history of the kingdom's military. I noticed while I was reading it that there are a lot of similarities between Pokémon that have served here over the centuries and the types that attacked the garden. Probopass, Electivire, Magmortar… have you seen any others?"

Matt could feel his heart sinking. He instantly knew what Cassy was suggesting. "We ran into the Pokémon hunters who controlled those Pokémon. They had Yanmega, Togekiss, Honchkrow, Lickilicky…"

"They're all here," Cassy ominously revealed. "The only one I haven't seen is Heatran… but if the attackers are mimicking the kingdom's military history, I did find one other Pokémon…"

"Please don't say Dragonite," Matt practically begged her.

When Cassy went silent, that was all Matt needed to confirm his worst fears. He stood up and stepped away from the computer, removed his glasses, and ran his hand down his face. Rosalita hurried after him and grabbed his shoulder to get his attention.

"I-"

"Your brother killed my grandfather," he said, cutting her off. "I'm certain of it now. Noel and Leon are just his stooges, they aren't consciously following La Ciudad Dorada's history. They didn't even know Shaymin had another form. There's only one person who would go to that length, who would have access to those collars."

"I-I'm sorry…" Rosalita's grip loosened, and her hand fell off his shoulder. "I didn't know. I didn't know about the Pokémon they were using mimicking our military. If Fernando set this up, he kept it a secret from everyone. I didn't know he had any Pokémon…"

"But Shaymin should have known about the military of the past!" Matt fumed, spinning around on his heel to confront the tiny Pokémon. "Why didn't you tell me when you saw what they were using?"

"I couldn't let you fall to the same fate as the professor, yes?" Shaymin revealed. "If you knew the truth you would have thrown caution to the wind and gone to fight Fernando yourself. Should he get possession of the Three Pillars' puzzle box, he would be able to work things out for himself without you, even if it would be harder than using you. I did it to protect you, yes."

Much to Shaymin's surprise, it was Rosalita instead of Matt who came over and picked it up. It squeaked, but the harsh anger on Rosalita's face didn't change at all. "I don't care if you've served my family for seven hundred years or not. What you did was wrong. Matt had every right to know that Fernando was the one who killed Sutter. _I_ had every right to know Fernando was the one who killed Sutter. This is why I believe we need to stop being so secretive about our traditions. When I am queen, that is going to change. Now apologize."

Rosalita's outburst left Shaymin completely stunned. Never in its centuries of life had anyone, let alone a member of the royal family, spoken to it in such a way. Such a display of insolence would normally provoke a stern response. Yet, Rosalita's demand for an apology only made Shaymin recall what the wanderer had tasked it with doing so long ago. _"You are the one who must keep them on the path of righteousness and wisdom,"_ his words echoed in its head. It had always thought it was doing that, but looking into Rosalita's eyes and seeing the sheer hurt in them made it question whether it had actually been tricking them instead of guiding them all along. It had felt those doubts about that after the first civil war, too, but was able to settle itself once settling on the story about the king's ambitious brother. Now, though, all those doubts had come roaring back.

"I apologize… to both of you," it finally said. "All this time I've been doing what I thought was right to keep your family and the people you lead on the path of gratitude, Rosalita. Now I see that I didn't have faith in you to be able to do it yourselves, yes… I sanitized history to keep the peace and that led to this, did it not?"

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't think so," Matt interjected. "The saying goes, 'those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.' If you don't know the truth about history you can't learn from it."

"I apologize for hiding the professor's killer from you, too, but I want to hear the answer from Rosalita, yes."

"Matt has a point," Rosalita said, turning the sternness Shaymin ordinarily would have displayed against it. "Things are going to have to change in La Ciudad Dorada. But first, we must stop Fernando and save him."

"Save him?!" Matt couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Even now?!"

"He took my parents from me the same way he took your grandfather from you and Amanda," the princess said, her voice icy and flat. "That's not Shaymin's fault, that's Fernando's and no one else's. But at the same time, he's my brother. He has to be stopped, but I still believe that once the truth about our history is revealed, he will return to being the person he used to be. In fact, I believe that now more than ever. His crimes are his to be punished for, but it was all the secrecy that convinced him there was a greater truth to find. The secrecy was what warped him."

"I will never forgive him for what he did to Sutter," Matt firmly reiterated, "but if the best way to ensure he gets punished for it is for me to support you, then that's what I'm going to do. I'm in your corner now, one hundred percent."

"Thank you." As Rosalita put Shaymin down and turned around, Matt thought to himself that just a day earlier she probably would have been emotional in her gratitude. Yet there she was in front of him, her manner as hard as Registeel's iron. He wasn't sure if he was pleased or worried to see her so determined. It reminded him of Fernando. "Come on, let's go solve that message," she told him, snapping him out of his daze.

" _I guess I have to take things as they are now,"_ he decided. _"Shaymin was right when it said I'd go after Fernando, but now… I won't abandon Rosalita or any of them."_

"I will give you the answer, yes," Shaymin remorsefully offered, padding along after Matt and Rosalita on their way back to Sheena and Eleanor.

"No, we'll do it on our own," Rosalita said. "There has to still be some meaning in something. If I have to be the first leader in however much time to walk this trail with a clear mind, I-" For a moment, Rosalita's resolve wavered. "I will carry that burden."

Neither Matt nor Shaymin could say anything more.

"What was all that about?" Cassy questioned Matt when she saw him return to her sight.

"If the culprit behind all of this is imitating the history of the Doradan military as you suggested, it could only be Fernando." Matt ran his hand down his face before quietly adding, "He must be Sutter's killer, too. He's got those hunters following me, but Cassy, as long as you're in Lingote Palace, you're in danger. It might already be too late for you to get away."

Much to Matt's surprise, Cassy had barely any visible reaction. "No, you're looking at it wrong. He can't do a thing to me. As long as I'm here, he can use me as leverage to pull your strings."

"Are you really fine with that?" Sheena interjected, caught off guard by Cassy's indifference to her situation.

Cassy grit her teeth, but hid it by pressing her lips together. "I'm perfectly fine with that. Besides, you're all going to see the search for the Golden City to the end, right? If I'm here and Fernando thinks I'm an asset, he won't hurt either of us since he'll see you doing what he wants."

"I guess you have a point…" Despite agreeing with her, Matt still held deep reservations about Cassy's plan. "The board could be upended at any time, though. If he decides he no longer needs us, you won't be safe anymore."

"Relax, there's nothing for you to worry about," Cassy said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "You want to know what else I found in that book?"

"Tell us," Rosalita insisted.

"I was talking to Matt…" Cassy was barely able to mask the irritated sigh that slipped from her mouth. "...but alright. I found a page in it that also bears the symbol and has nothing to do with the military. Here."

Cassy held the book up so Matt and the others could see it. The page in question was covered in Braille marks, with the flower symbol stamped on the corner. As soon as he saw it, Matt covered his chin and mouth in thought.

"What is it?" Sheena asked him.

"This is a standard Braille alphabet, no doubt about it. I'd recognize it anywhere." Matt pointed at one of the characters, which had the letter 'G' written below it. It was the only one to have a letter tied to it. "But this… this is wrong. That's not 'G,' that one's 'D.' Why would they have a Braille alphabet that's so clearly wrong?"

"I'd say it's a deliberate choice by whoever did it," Eleanor reasoned. "All the other Braille has made sense so far."

"I agree with you," Rosalita concurred.

"Wait…" A realization struck Matt's mind, and he lashed his head around toward Eleanor so quickly that it shook his hair. "What did you just say?"

"That it was deliberate?" Matt's sustained look of inquisitiveness prompted Eleanor to continue. "All the Braille we've seen until this point has made perfect sense."

"All the Braille _to this point_." Matt raised a finger into the air. "What have we got here now? A garbled, incoherent message and an alphabet that mistranslates the Braille. But what if it's _not_ mistranslated?"

"A cipher," Rosalita recognized.

"And its key." Matt started typing furiously, saying while he did so, "That's why everything related to this message had the symbol on it. We were meant to connect them all together. And I'd bet that's exactly why you were meant to be shown that book by your parents, Rosalita. One day you were meant to arrive here, discover the cipher, and crack it with the key from that book."

"There's the Matt I want to see," Cassy proudly said from behind the book.

"What's the secret of the key?" asked Sheena.

"If I'm right, each character is three letters away from what it should be. Like the one in the book? That one showed the character for 'D' marked as 'G.' It goes 'E,' 'F,' 'G.' If we assume that all the characters in this message are displaced in the same way, then…" Matt interrupted his own thought to exclaim, "I got it!"

"You finished it?"

"Yes, Rosalita!" he enthusiastically said, pushing his laptop toward the others. "Have a look."

Matt's work had produced a duplicate of the carving on the laptop's screen. He had adjusted it to correct the Braille in accordance with his theory on the key, then translated it into familiar letters.

"The king must face both the heat of the peoples' eye and the cold burden of their position," Rosalita read aloud. "Yes, having gone through the earth, whoever shall wear the crown must now travel to the end of the realm. The body of ice awaits in the land consumed by what dispels gratitude, at the site where king first turned on king."

" _Something's a little bit odd about how that one's written,"_ Matt thought to himself. He kept his concerns quiet, however, and instead asked Rosalita, "Where king first turned on king?"

"It's referring to the place where the civil war began," the princess explained, "and I know where that is. Let me see the map."

Matt complied with Rosalita's request, manipulating the data on his laptop in order to bring up the picture of the map from the archive. The windows containing the Braille messages disappeared, while Cassy's video feed shrank into the corner.

"It's here," Rosalita pointed out, placing her finger on a location at the far side of the mountain range. "The body of ice awaits in the land consumed by what dispels gratitude, at the site where king first turned on king. That location is where the first battle of the civil war was fought, and it's frequently snowing there. The cold is what dispels gratitude, ask Shaymin."

The mythical Pokémon didn't wait for any of its human companions to say anything. "I really don't like the cold, yes?" it whimpered. "In fact, it's hard for me to even keep my other form when it gets too cold. I like staying in the palace instead."

"There's not a single one of us who wouldn't rather live in a palace," Eleanor teased it, "I'd bet money on that."

"I'm happy with my home in Michina," Sheena said. "I've never needed a lot in life. But it sounds like a dream of yours, Eleanor."

"Won't deny it." Eleanor shut her eyes and smiled dreamily. "If I could be reincarnated in a future life, I would want to be the royal engineer of La Ciudad Dorada. Just a few days here has already made me want to stay."

"You do realize you don't need to be reincarnated for that to happen, right?" Rosalita pointed out.

Eleanor froze. It took a moment for the offer implicit in Rosalita's words to sink in. "Aha, don't joke like that, Rosa," she dismissively said. "I'm nobody. I don't deserve a place in actual nobility."

"I might not be able to just confer a title upon you, but I'm not joking," insisted the princess. "It's within my power to give you a job in the palace once I'm queen. I-"

Rosalita couldn't finish before Eleanor tightly embraced her. "Thank you so much, Rosa! I-I mean it… I've felt so comfortable hanging out with you guys, and La Ciudad Dorada's a town that speaks to me, you know?"

"Don't worry about it at all," Rosalita soothingly said, her words accompanied by a comforting pat on the head. "You might all be foreigners, but when you're in La Ciudad Dorada, you're a part of it. That makes it my responsibility to do right by you."

Watching the scene from nearby, Shaymin said to no one in particular, "That's the gratitude I want to see!" It couldn't help but shake its body as multiple flowers erupted from its back.

"I don't want to bring you down," Matt said to Eleanor and Rosalita, "but we can't do anything about that until we stop Fernando."

Rosalita hesitated, but after looking to Eleanor and Sheena, she nodded. "You're correct. We'd best be off to find Regice right away. Eleanor, you can get us there, right?"

"It would be my pleasure, Rosa," Eleanor replied, holding the sides of her dress and curtsying. She froze mid-gesture, looked up and playfully corrected, "Excuse me, _Queen_. Queen Rosa."

Rosalita couldn't even get her hand up to her mouth before she started laughing. "Yes… that was just what I needed today. Thank you."

Satisfied that his companions were ready to move on, Matt turned his attention to his laptop. "And thanks for helping us out, Cassy. I couldn't have figured that one out without you."

"That's why I stayed here, after all. But…" Cassy's expression hardened. "I found something else while I was reading."

"What?" Matt could tell Cassy's new discovery was of some importance from his demeanor, and the way he momentarily lost control of the volume of his voice attracted the attention of the others just as quickly. "What are you talking about?"

Cassy reached out of the view of the camera, then held the photograph of Sutter up to it. "What's the deal here?"

Nobody noticed Rosalita freeze up the instant she saw the photograph. _"Oh no… I can't deal with this now…"_ she thought, sharing a nervous, knowing glance with Shaymin. _"I'm terrible… I talk about revealing secrets and yet here I am not telling him what really happened… I just can't right now, not after what we just learned…"_

"I-" Finding himself at a loss for words, Matt covered his mouth with his hand. All he could eventually say was, "It doesn't make sense…"

"That's Sutter Chiaki," Sheena quietly observed, but who are the others? They look familiar."

"The old man's Fernando VI," Cassy revealed. "I know. I went right up to the so-called statue of him and compared… it's definitely him. The younger one? I don't know for sure, but I have to assume that's Fernando VII."

Sheena peered over to Matt, who was still fixated on the image of his grandfather with the puzzle box, the king and the prince. "Well, he came to La Ciudad Dorada during Fernando VI's reign to search for the Golden City, no? Given how respected a man Professor Chiaki was, it's not surprising that the royal family would keep something from that visit."

"You're wrong," Matt weakly replied, "This can't be from then."

"You see it too, right?" Cassy ventured.

"Yeah, I do…" He brought his finger to the screen to help manipulate the photo for the others, shifting and zooming in on the bronze arches before pointing a shaking finger at the image. "Sheena, Eleanor, look right there. Recognize that?" Matt didn't give time for them to reply. "It's the museum in Lingote Palace… as it was when we saw it. Completed."

"And you said Sutter came to La Ciudad Dorada during the time Godey was designing and building it," Sheena realized.

"Surely there's an answer in the archive somewhere," Rosalita emphatically told the others. The thought of blurting the truth out flickered across the princess' mind, only for the stress of revealing the truth behind the photograph to prove too much and force her to gulp down her words. Turning her back on them, she shook her head and before tersely suggesting, "Keep searching in there. Maybe you'll find something."

"Wait, don't you kn-"

It wasn't that Rosalita ignored Cassy's plea. She certainly heard it, but the only acknowledgement she was willing to give was to clenching her teeth, and with her back turned none of the others could see it. She walked off without another word, heading for the stairs back out of Registeel's cave with Shaymin nipping at her heels.

"Cassy, thanks again. I'll call you again soon."

Matt dismissed the video call, leaving a confused Cassy to vanish from the screen, then closed his laptop and tucked it back into his bag. He stumbled after Rosalita, and Eleanor and Sheena followed.

"Hey, you know what?" Eleanor said to Sheena as they walked. "I'd bet you dollars to doughnuts there's something we don't know about going on here."

"Oh, definitely," Sheena agreed. "That's an understatement if I've ever heard one. Thing is, I don't know if we've got the time to worry about it now."

"True."

By the time Matt, Eleanor and Sheena surfaced in the entrance hall of the fort, Rosalita was nearly back to the exit outside. The three quickened their pace to catch up with her.

"Rosalita, slow down…"

Instead of just slowing when Matt suggested it, Rosalita stopped. "That was the Cassy you mentioned earlier, correct?" she asked, forcing a smile even as she faced away from him. "She seems quite smart. I'm confident she'll determine the answer behind that photograph."

"She is, but…" Matt's agreement with the princess's praise of Cassy was all he could manage. Anything further he could have said died off long before it reached his lips.

Eleanor and Sheena, meanwhile, shared a glance as the group started moving again. The engineer then started to say, "You know, I'm starting to think-"

Whatever was on Eleanor's mind would never get a chance to be said, as it was not only the sun that greeted them when they got outside. The moment they passed through the doorway of the fort, a Tangrowth crashed down in front of them. Matt slipped and nearly fell thanks to how quickly he jumped back, while Sheena put her arm up to protect her face, but Eleanor and Rosalita were much more restrained. Eleanor simply pulled her goggles back over her eyes, and Rosalita braced herself, knowing right away that Registeel would not be the only test she faced that day.

"Yo, Tangrowth!" Though the group could not yet see him, they immediately recognized the voice as Leon's. "Use Block to seal 'em in!"

Tangrowth's collar, which he was wearing like a belt, lit up upon Leon's command. The Grass-type Pokémon spread his arms out, allowing thick vines to sprout out of them. His reach was effectively extended, allowing him to form a wide semicircle around the group.

It was at that time Noel and Leon finally appeared, flying over the courtyard on their wingpacks.

"Judgment day is here, Princess!" Noel said to Rosalita, her voice dripping with impatience and anger. "That was a dirty trick you played on us back in that mine, so now it's _our_ turn to fight dirty. I'm done playin' games with you, so I'll make this short and sweet: The box and Shaymin. Hand 'em over, _now._ "

"You are implying this was a game to start with," Rosalita shot back, jabbing a finger in the hunters' direction. Shaymin timidly stepped behind her leg to hide. "Leave this place at once and cease your interference with our customs."

"There you go again, talkin' down to us just 'cause you got money…" Noel's anger was consuming her, transforming her words into a guttural growl. "You ain't nothin' just 'cause you live in that castle. Everything you got, you were born into. You don't know anything 'bout the way guys like Bro and I gotta live, fightin' for every scrap out there!"

"You know what?" Rosalita paused. She hadn't intended to be dramatic, but for Matt, Sheena and Eleanor, that was exactly what it was. "You're right," she finally admitted, visibly surprising Noel. "Most of my life, I've been in Lingote Palace. I've never wanted for anything, nor have I needed to… but I have to learn. I know that I must if I'm going to lead. My brother doesn't understand that, so I don't know why you're taking orders from him."

"Finally you're talkin' some sense," Leon said, shrugging. "You're right about your little creep brother, too. We don't need nobody like him."

Rosalita tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"You wanna tell her, Sis?"

"Yeah, Bro," Noel replied before turning her attention back to Rosalita. "Listen good, Princess. Sure, it was your brother who sent us on this mission, but we got to thinkin', and we realized something. A guy like him is the type who'd take all our hard work and rip us off for it. But if we take that little Shaymin and your city of gold, and we sell 'em ourselves, that'll put us right on easy street for a lifetime. We're fightin' for ourselves now, and nobody, not you or your little creep brother, is gonna deny us our freedom. Now, hand the box and Shaymin over. Last time I'm gonna ask."

Rosalita backed up and whispered to Matt, "Shaymin and I can handle this. Go hide in the fort so they can't get the box."

"Are you really-"

"We can handle it," she repeated. "Just go!"

At Rosalita's insistent urging, Matt turned around and tapped both Eleanor and Sheena on their shoulders so they would follow him. The trio barely moved before a pile of sand with a red shovel sticking out suddenly materialized in front of the door, blocking their path. Three tower-like shapes rose up to form the shape of a sandcastle, with the creature's eyes and mouth formed from the central tower while the side ones acted as her arms. Unlike Tangrowth and most of the other Pokémon the siblings commanded, she did not have a collar.

"Palossand, Iron Defense!" Leon called out after catching the Poké Ball he threw to send her out.

Palossand responded by stretching her arm towers up higher, covering more of the fort's entrance. She issued a warning to her trainer's enemies by growling at them, and her body's sand hardened into a solid lump with a metallic sheen.

"No!" Sheena exclaimed.

"I thought I already told you, we ain't playin' games anymore." Noel's anger hadn't lessened, but it had changed into a colder, more focused fury. She removed one of the clockwork Poké Balls from her jacket, sharply telling the group, "We ain't leavin' here without the keys to our future!" before throwing the sphere.

A Pokémon unlike anything Matt had ever seen before erupted from the device and crashed onto the roof of the fortress. He was easily at least eight feet tall, and as the Pokémon stomped forth and roared at the sky, they got a clear look at his lithe yet muscular gray body and the yellow-edged scales that covered it like armor. One of the collars was affixed around his neck.

"What is that?!" Matt gasped in shock.

"A Kommo-o…" Rosalita's reaction was one of muted awe. "One of our kingdom's greatest knights used one… but this one's much bigger than normal."

"Bigger _and_ badder," Noel scoffed before jabbing her finger forward. "Have a taste for yourselves! Kommo-o, Clanging Scales!"

Urged on by both Noel's verbal command and the directive entered into her gauntlet, Kommo-o smashed his fists together to make his scales vibrate. They started glowing, and he pointed his claws towards Matt's group, releasing a horrible screech that manifested as solid soundwaves. These waves hit the earth in the quartet's midst and exploded, throwing Matt and Eleanor in one direction while Rosalita and Sheena went in the other.

The chorus of yelling that broke out beneath her was like music to Noel's ears. Flashing a twisted, excited grin, she scornfully mocked them, "Ain't so fun when you're the ones on the receivin' end of the dirty tricks, is it? Welcome to our lives!"

Kommo-o viciously roared and leapt from the roof, landing in front of Palossand and kicking up a cloud of dirt. Matt, having shielded Eleanor and gotten the grit thrown in his face, coughed as he fumbled in his bag for Anton's Poké Ball. He released his Rhyperior as soon as his hand found the sphere. Shaymin, caught between the two Pokémon that could easily crush it, squeaked in fear and ran to Rosalita, climbing up and hiding under the princess's cloak.

"It's a Dragon-and-Fighting type!" Rosalita yelled to him. "You're sending your Rhyperior into an impossible battle!"

Matt gasped and looked back at the two Pokémon, but he couldn't act before the reason for Rosalita's warning made itself plain. Kommo-o drove his fist into Anton's chin, and the force of his Sky Uppercut pulled both Pokémon into the air despite their tremendous weights.

It was then that Matt got an idea. "Anton, get yourself together and use Avalanche!"

Matt's words threw a switch in Anton's head. He gathered his strength and pushed Kommo-o away, then growled and swung his arm in the dragon's direction. Boulders of ice formed around him and fell, bombarding both Kommo-o and Palossand.

With Noel and Leon's Pokémon immobilized and the hunters' attention diverted, Rosalita sensed an opportunity. She stood up, retrieved Adiela's Poké Ball and threw it straight at Tangrowth.

"Megahorn!" she cried out.

Adiela erupted from the ball a few feet away from Tangrowth, her head lowered and legs set to hit the ground running. She drove her horn into the Grass-type right below his concealed eyes, and he groaned as he stumbled back. The vines he'd extended to wall off the group's escape broke from his body and withered away.

"Meet us on the other side!" Rosalita told Matt and Eleanor, pointing back and forth before pulling Sheena behind one of the courtyard's stones.

"You get what she meant?" Eleanor whispered to him.

"Yeah, I think so…" With Kommo-o and Palossand trapped by the remnants of Anton's Avalanche, Matt took the opportunity to recall him to his Poké Ball. He then ran to hide behind one of the nearby outcroppings, and Eleanor wasted no time in joining him. "I've got the box, she's got Shaymin," he quietly explained. "If we go in separate directions, we split up the opposition."

"Oh yeah, I'm hearing you on that one." Eleanor pulled her goggles back down over her eyes and took Persian's Poké Ball in her hand. "Once we're out of here, I can get us away from those two, no problem."

"I wish I shared your optimism," Matt replied, "but it's not going to be easy fighting our way through all th-"

Matt couldn't even finish making his point before Kommo-o made it for him by smashing their stony shield. He and Eleanor scuttled back away as the Dragon-and-Fighting-type Pokémon rose back up from breaking the rock with Iron Head. Luckily enough, Matt happened to have his hand in his bag and near Sally's Poké Ball already, so he was able to quickly dispatch his Salamence to protect them. Sally materialized directly in Kommo-o's face and immediately collided with him, using Dragon Rush to smash him into the wall of the fortress.

"That was close…" Eleanor said between deep breaths.

"Come on." Matt stood up, pulling Eleanor with him by the hand. "We have to go. Now."

"You don't have to tell me twice," she answered, stealing a glance back at Sally leaving Kommo-o behind in the wall.

Hand in hand, Matt and Eleanor started running to the nearest chunk of rock they could reach. The maze-like layout of the ruined courtyard proved to be a good thing in the end. It didn't do much to hide them from an airborne enemy, but it provided cover, and that was enough. Sally flew after them, but before they could get far, the collared Lickilicky and Electivire appeared before them, accompanied by Noel's oil-slicked Muk.

"Where do you think you're going?" the sister half of the sibling hunter duo taunted them. They could see that she was hovering overhead by herself - evidently their plan to split Noel and Leon up had worked. "Don't bother answering that, 'cause I don't care! Lickilicky, Blizzard!"

"Sally, block it with Flamethrower!"

The gusts of ice and fire spat by the two Pokémon met between their trainers, creating a wall of steam that separated the sides. Matt had to shield his eyes from the blowback of the collision, but Eleanor's goggles kept her protected.

As he recovered, Matt took notice of how the steam kept Noel and her Pokémon from seeing him and sensed an opportunity. He quietly reached in his bag for two more Poké Balls and opened them, releasing his Aggron and Ambipom. Only once they were out did he even consider that Noel could use the cloud to her advantage too, a lesson he became very aware of when a bolt of lightning and a burst of fire came through the smoky veil. They were obviously blind stabs on Noel's part and missed Matt's Pokémon by a wide margin, but came dangerously close to him.

"Are you alright?" Eleanor asked him. She came to his side with Persian accompanying her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, wiping his brow before refocusing on the dissolving cloud. "We have to deal with that, though."

Enough of the steam had lifted to reveal Electivire and Muk as their attackers. They were still giving off sparks and breathing embers, respectively. On Noel's part, the cloud's dissolution showed her for the first time that she was against not one but four Pokémon.

The hunter tightly balled her fists and growled, "I'm so sick of dealin' with you people… been doin' it my whole life and I'm just done with it. Lickilicky," she paused to enter a command into her gauntlet, "Dragon Tail! Electivire, take Lickilicky flyin' with Magnet Rise!"

Purple light forged the shape of a pointed tail around Lickilicky's own, but she otherwise stood still and waited for Electivire to stomp over. The Electric-type Pokémon wrapped her in a tight embrace from the front before using electromagnetic force to propel them both into the air. Their sudden synergy caught both Sally and Matt off guard, and all either could manage was a surprised grunt from the former. Electivire swung Lickilicky around, using her like a blunt weapon to batter Sally with Dragon Tail. The single hit left a dark mark squarely atop Sally's head and forced her to the earth.

Just when it seemed like Noel's charges had struck a strong blow, Eleanor's Persian intervened. The feline Pokémon vaulted onto Sally's back and then sprang at Electivire and Lickilicky, who were still locked in their embrace. They had started to fall back down themselves, and with her Foul Play, Persian turned that momentum into force strong enough to pitch them into the earth.

Noel was only growing angrier by the minute, but her fury was starting to give her a new sense of focus. "Take 'em out one by one. One by one," she repeated like a mantra. "One by one. The dragon first. Muk, nail that Salamence with Gunk Shot!"

Sally's descent placed her squarely in the sights of Noel's Muk, and the wallop she'd taken from Lickilicky's Dragon Tail left her too dazed to defend herself. She got a faceful of the sludge Muk coughed up, enough to not only cover her head but splatter all over her neck as far back as her wings.

" _Sally!_ " Matt shouted in dismay as he watched her shake her head back and forth fruitlessly, roaring in pain all the while. Seeing that making her continue to fight would only hurt them both, he recalled her to her Poké Ball. "Tony," he said to his Aggron, "Head Smash!"

A rumbling cry rose out of the Aggron's throat. He slowly lowered his head, pointing his sharp horns at the Poison-and-Dark-type that had crippled his companion.

"Muk, Fire Blast 'em again!" Noel hurriedly ordered her partner Pokémon, plainly seeing the threat Tony posed.

Muk saw it too, and he didn't hesitate to choke up a ball of flame whose size rivalled that of his earlier Gunk Shot. One thing neither Muk nor Noel realized, though, was that behind the Aggron's bulky facade lurked shocking athleticism. Their anticipation of a lumbering charge crumbled when Tony sprang like a rocket at Muk from all fours, surrounded by a light that gave his body a monochromatic appearance. He smashed cleanly through the oncoming fireball, and at that point, Noel and Muk both felt their perception of time slow to a halt. The few seconds before Tony collided with Muk seemed like forever to them both, and all they could do was watch the looming theropod Pokémon in wide-eyed horror.

When the inevitable collision came, all of Tony's momentum transferred itself to Muk in the impact. The Poison-and-Dark-type bulleted past Electivire and Lickilicky as they recovered, only stopping when he hit a stone that crumbled from the force.

Seeing Muk crash into the rock pulled the cork on a torrent of rage in Noel's heart. "Enough!" she screamed at Matt and Eleanor, coming close to going into convulsions. "You ain't gettin' away with treatin' my boy Muk like that! Electivire, put your Earthquake right into that Aggron!"

Electivire's collar flashed as the device re-energized its wearer. She propelled herself into the sky with Magnet Rise, spun around and pulled back her fist, aiming squarely at Tony's back in her descent.

"Persian, hurry and use Swift!"

Noel had lost track of Eleanor's Persian after the Dark-type struck Electivire and Lickilicky down earlier. The feline Pokémon's reappearance caught her completely by surprise, and she had no response when Persian battered Electivire away from Tony with a stream of glowing stars. It fell to Lickilicky, whose collar had revitalized her while Electivire's collar did the same to its wearer, to act on the basic directives given to her. She trudged up on Persian's side and swung her head back while allowing her tongue to stretch even further out of her mouth.

Matt, seeing the Power Whip heading for Persian, tried to repay the favor Eleanor had done for him. "Agnetha," he urgently said to his Ambipom while pointing at Lickilicky, "Seed Bomb!"

"Bi!" the two-tailed simian answered. She spit seeds at Lickilicky, though they failed to reach their target before Persian got swatted by Power Whip and hissed in pain. Lickilicky, too distracted with Persian to see Agnetha's oncoming assault, ended up taking the full brunt of the barrage. Each seed exploded on contact with the Normal-type's rubbery skin, making her wail and fall to one knee.

"Why do you two care so much?" Matt and Eleanor assumed Noel was speaking hypothetically, but they were wrong. She was completely serious. "You and Princess, you got everything you need. People like you, you're always lookin' down on those without, but you don't want us climbin' out, either. What does it matter to you if Bro and I escape this life?"

"Because you're doing it in a way that's only causing harm!" Matt yelled up at her. "Look at what you've done. Look at what you've _always_ done. This isn't all that different from stealing and selling Pokémon back in Orre, Noel! This time, though, you're taking something that the Doradan people built their civilization around. You're robbing them of who they are if you do this!"

"You intellectual snobs, always lecturin' us like we're stupid…" Noel didn't notice Matt frown. He had hoped that he could get through to her, as unlikely as it was. "Live in your little bubbles if you want. Bro and I, we live in the real world, and-"

"So do we, you just-"

"You don't know _anything_ about the real world!" Noel roared over Matt's interruption. "Bro and me and our crew, we did what we needed to survive, and there ain't nothing different now. I don't care if those people lose their precious city, get it through your thick skull. They never reached out to help us, and they still got everything they need."

Matt spread his arms as if he were pleading with Noel. "But if you give this up and just as-"

"Don't bother," Eleanor whispered in his ear, having sidled up next to him. "She won't stop. She can't."

"You're right," Matt admitted, sighing in defeat. He wanted to do something to help Noel, but watching her army reorganize itself, he knew he had to accept reality. _"Eleanor said it. Noel's just too far gone… I can't blame her for fighting a world that's always turned its back on her, but…"_

Matt sighed again, resigning himself to the fact that the battle would just rage on.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the courtyard, Leon wasn't faring as well against his own adversary. He had pitted his Dusknoir, Roserade and Honchkrow against Rosalita and Sheena, but the princess was easily holding them off with her own Pokémon. Dusknoir flew behind Roserade to catch the Grass-and-Poison-type when Adiela flung her back using Flame Charge. Rosalita's Rapidash bounded back to the side of her Luxray and Shiftry, where she neighed and pawed the ground while dispelling the remaining embers from around her body.

"Deivi, Dark Pulse!" Rosalita cried, pointing at the trio of collared Pokémon. "Isabel, give him a boost with Helping Hand!"

Isabel the Luxray firmly planted her foot in the soft, muddy soil and roared. A golden aura erupted around her and cut through the air, infusing itself into the body of her companion Shiftry. Deivi then crossed his leafy arms and aimed a beam of glowing, black-and-purple rings at Roserade and Dusknoir. He was able to easily double the usual intensity of his Dark Pulse thanks to Helping Hand empowering him.

"Dusknoir, get out of there!" Leon said in a panic. "Ally Switch!"

The blue light on Dusknoir's collar blinked, and he dropped Roserade to the ground before teleporting away. Honchkrow materialized in his place, just in time to weather Deivi's assault.

"He's got some clever tactics of his own…" Rosalita noted. "I shouldn't be surprised, if Fernando really did prepare these Pokémon."

"You know him better than any of us," Sheena said to her, "so you should have insight into how he would think."

"You're right. I'm feeling pretty confident in that now." Rosalita swiftly crossed and uncrossed her arms, sending both her hair and her cloak fluttering behind her. "Isabel, send Helping Hand over to Adiela! Adiela, you strike that Honchkrow with Wild Charge!"

Once Isabel's golden aura merged with Adiela, the Rapidash lowered her head and galloped at Honchkrow, her body cloaked by sparking, yellow electricity. Her increased agility from use of Flame Charge allowed her to ram Honchkrow with such speed that Leon couldn't react until she was already on her way back. Honchkrow, on his part, was left twitching on the ground from the electricity still flowing through him. He hadn't quite fainted, but Adiela badly injured him.

"Sis, you wanna come over here and give me a little help?" Leon helplessly called out to Noel. No response came. "Those other guys are givin' you a hard time, Sis?" he muttered in disbelief.

"Have you had enough yet?" Rosalita planted her hands firmly on her hips, causing her elbows to poke out of her cloak. Her eyebrows twitched, caught in her mentally teetering between anger and exasperation with the situation. "Think for a minute, there's no way my brother is letting you leave here. Whether you give him what he wants or not, you're only loose ends to him!"

Shaymin climbed out of the princess's cloak and perched on her shoulder. "Listen to Rosalita, yes? Fernando already killed the king, the queen and the professor." Turning its nose up, Shaymin huffed and added, "Realize you have no value to him, yes."

"How dare-" Leon's intent to yell at Shaymin ceased when he realized where the Pokémon was. He had always considered himself the muscle and his sister the brain of their duo, and he was more than happy to play that role. But when he spotted Shaymin on Rosalita's shoulder, he saw an opportunity. "Sis'll love it if I get you first. Roserade, blow 'em away with a Hyper Beam at their feet!"

Having heard Leon's order, Rosalita instinctively turned and reached out to shield Sheena. She didn't even have enough time to do that before the pulsating orange laser Roserade fired from her blue bouquet exploded right in front of them. The princess and the priestess got thrown into the grimy terrain, the muck soiling Sheena's coat and Rosalita's hair. Both screamed, but their voices were overrun by Shaymin shrieking as it tumbled over itself in the air. It splattered into the mud and shrilled even louder at the state it found itself in.

"No, no, no!" It lashed its head back and forth in a desperate attempt to get the dirt off. "I hate this, yes! Someone get me up!"

"I'll be happy to."

Shaymin felt a pair of powerful hands seize it and immediately regretted what it had said. With Rosalita and Sheena still several feet away, Leon took the opportunity to land and grab his target. The tiny Pokémon writhed in his grip, trying with all its might to escape, but his hold was too strong.

"You let go of me right now, yes!" Shaymin sputtered. "How dare you put your hands on me!"

"Sorry," Leon said with a sarcastic shake of his head, "you ain't goin' nowhere until there's a nice fat pile of cash takin' your place."

"Rosalita, look!" Sheena had realized Shaymin's predicament and yelled to get Rosalita to do the same.

The princess gasped and angrily jabbed her finger toward the hunter. "Adiela, Deivi, Isabel," she commanded, "get Shaymin back!"

All three Pokémon acted in unison with their trainer's order. A purple aura surrounded Isabel's leg, and she bound into the air while Deivi spit a stream of seeds at Leon. Adiela's fire shot up from her back and surrounded her body in preparation for Flame Charge.

"I don't think so!" Leon pulled Shaymin away, hiding it against his body. "Dusknoir, hold 'em up with Will-O-Wisp!"

The thick-bodied phantom floated up higher, hauntingly moaning while clenching the mouth on his stomach. He conjured numerous globes of blue flame around himself, then rained them down on his foes by pulling back and opening his stomach mouth as far as it could go. Deivi and Isabel halted their advances, knowing well what would happen if they let themselves come in contact with the spectral fire. Adiela, on the other hand, had no such concerns. Thanks to being a Fire-type herself, she carelessly sprinted straight through the onslaught.

"Nope, sorry!" Recognizing that continuing to engage Rosalita was an unneeded risk, Leon used his wingpack to ascend into the air with Shaymin still in his clutches.

That was the point where he had made a fatal miscalculation.

Shaymin went still in his hands, sick of trying to squirm its way out. He didn't realize until it was far too late that the mythical Pokémon wasn't surrendering. Far from it. Instead, it tightened its muscles and focused its mind, pulling the mud and dirt stuck on it into its body. Such grime wasn't as powerful a fuel as the plumes of smoke in the mine, but it would suffice. There was nothing Leon could do to stop Shaymin from exploding with Seed Flare, simultaneously freeing itself and flinging its captor back to the ground.

Across the courtyard, the bright explosion and Leon's accompanying shout finally caught Noel's attention. Her perception of time slowed to a near halt, and watching her brother fall made her feel like her entire world was collapsing.

All her anger melted away, and Noel cried out in panic, "Bro!" She flew away from her own battle and her Pokémon followed, both the army and its master disregarding Matt and Eleanor.

"Should we go after her?" Matt wondered.

"Nah," Eleanor replied with a shrug, "not yet anyway. Rosa can handle it for a little bit. Let's go get our ride started, then we'll get them and beat it."

"Makes enough sense. Let's do it."

Without Noel impeding them, Matt and Eleanor were able to make their way to the outer wall of the courtyard in no time. They stopped with only about a dozen feet separating them from the gateway out of the area to allow their Pokémon to catch up. Agnetha and Persian arrived mere moments later, but it took Tony a little more time to join them. Just as the Aggron arrived, Matt and Eleanor could hear an explosion on the other side of the wall. They pressed themselves up against the stone barrier to hide from whatever had caused the noise, whose source they couldn't see.

For the next minute or so, Matt and Eleanor remained still. The sounds of Noel and Leon fighting with Rosalita still reached their ears, but there was nothing more from outside the courtyard. They edged their way closer to the gate, but before they reached it, Matt stopped.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he quietly warned Eleanor. He took off his bag and thrust it into the engineer's hands. "This is probably going to be an ambush, so hold on to that and keep it away from them if something happens."

"Aye, captain." Once again, Eleanor playfully saluted.

With his bag and thus the puzzle box securely with Eleanor, Matt shuffled closer to the gate. He hesitated at the very edge of the threshold, taking a deep breath before stepping around the corner.

Standing right there, literally on top of him, was Heatran. He froze, realizing that the explosion signified Heatran's arrival but unable to run away until the legendary Pokémon had already opened her giant mouth. That delay proved catastrophic. Heatran belched a plume of fire, and Matt wasn't all the way back behind the wall. It caught him on the left side of his face and torso.

In an instant, the world around him disappeared. Nothing remained but an infinite white void. He screamed but it stayed trapped in his mind, nothing coming out of his mouth at all. He reached forward as he fell backward to the ground, and when he hit the earth, that was when the pain came. Searing, incomprehensible pain that consumed every function his brain was capable of. He finally was able to scream as he rolled around on the dirt in a desperate but fruitless attempt to do something, _anything_ to stop his agony.

"Matt!" Eleanor shrieked. Agnetha, Tony and Persian all rushed past her and tackled Heatran, pushing the Pokémon away from Matt.

Over on the other side of the courtyard, Noel had helped Leon back into the air and joined her team of Pokémon with his. Rosalita fearlessly faced them after recovering Shaymin, but before the two sides could clash, the noise of the chaos at the gate reached them.

"Huh?" Noel glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Agnetha, Tony and Persian battering Heatran with Seed Bomb, Aqua Tail and Dark Pulse. She came close to shrugging off the confrontation thanks to her confidence in Heatran, but when she saw Matt's state, the truth finally dawned on her. Flying into a state of panic, she frantically entered commands into her gauntlet's projection, sputtering, "Heatran, what're you doin'? Stop that right now!"

"Sis, what's-"

"Heatran almost killed that guy!" Noel interrupted Leon. "That ain't the deal! That ain't ever been the deal!"

"Almost… killed?" Sheena uttered, blinking in shock. She focused her hearing and took notice of the anguished screaming coming from nearby. "Matt!" she realized.

"What did you two do?!" Rosalita didn't wait for an answer to her furious question. She stormed past the Pokémon without a single care for the risk they posed to her, strode under Noel and Leon, and discovered the terrible sight at the gate. "No… not you too," she said, her anger turning into something bordering on despair. The princess dropped to her knees at the side of her new friend. He'd managed to snuff out the flames but blacked out from the pain soon after. Rosalita tenderly ran her fingers down his charred clothing while Shaymin poked his head with its nose.

"He's still alive…" Sheena said. She'd clasped her hands to use her power and connect with Matt's mind. "I can sense his life energy, but it's badly weakened. He needs help, now."

"I can do that, yes," Shaymin informed Rosalita. Even the long-lived mythical Pokémon seemed rattled, speaking in a flat tone. "My Aromatherapy can stabilize the Gaia energy within him. Heal him to a stable state, yes."

"Do it then, please," urged the princess.

Shaymin tried to climb up onto Matt's head, but its diminutive size and stubby legs left it needing a boost from Rosalita. A pleasant floral scent wafted from the flowers on its back, and waves of green light passed through its body into Matt's. His breathing soon grew more stable and relaxed, as if he were enjoying a peaceful sleep instead. While Shaymin worked, Rosalita pulled the charred remnants of his coat and shirt away.

"Oh, that's a relief," she sighed when she saw that his burns had already been healed into scars. She took Elena's Poké Ball out of her cloak and opened it, allowing the Leavanny to materialize next to her. When Elena saw what had happened to Matt, she brought one of her leafy arms to her mouth and murmured in worry. "Don't worry, Elena, he'll be fine… I'm sure. For now, can you use your silk to make him bandages?"

"Van," Elena replied, nodding.

Meanwhile, Noel and Leon just stood by, watching the scene unfold while they were gripped by a sense of distressed alarm. Their Pokémon, including Heatran, were gathered around them but checked by Noel's command not to act.

"This ain't right," Noel said to her brother, "none of this is right at all."

"You said it, Sis." Not knowing what else to do, Leon took out his comb and shakily ran it through his hair. "Muggin' dudes in the desert was one thing, but we never left 'em to die… we took their Pokémon but that was it. But if this is what's gonna happen if we go for the gold…"

"This ain't us…" Noel lowered her head, and her hair cast a shadow over her face. "If we went this far to get what we want, we ain't… we ain't ever coming back once we cross this line. It's about survival, not… not…"

"This is all your fault!" Eleanor's angry outburst broke the siblings from their stupor, and they looked just in time to see her pull Matt's laptop out of his bag. "The answer to the last clue is in here," she warned them, raising the computer into the air. "You make one move and I'll destroy it! The box and Shaymin won't have any use to you without the clue!"

"I could tell you to hand it over too," Noel replied, "but my brain's tellin' me you ain't gonna do that. So a stalemate it is."

"No, not a stalemate," Rosalita declared, rising to her feet. In the blink of an eye, her Bibarel and Staraptor were released from their Poké Balls to join her Rapidash, Luxray and Shiftry. She gestured with her head toward Noel and Leon, and her five Pokémon immediately surrounded the hunters.

"What is…"

Leon's words cut off when his sister jabbed him in the side with her elbow. A quick look at the quintet of Pokémon around them led him to exactly why she did it. Their angry, intense expressions sent a chill down his spine that told him that they were not to be trifled with.

Rosalita smoothed out her cloak to appear more presentable, then warned the siblings, "Those five have helped me defeat Regirock and Registeel already. Challenge them at your own risk." Once she saw that Noel and Leon wouldn't take her up on her challenge, she glanced over her shoulder and said to Sheena, "Please go get one of those coats we saw in the fort earlier. He'll need something to wear instead of his burned clothes."

"Right." With that, Sheena turned and strode back toward the fortress.

Shifting her attention squarely to the hunter siblings, Rosalita firmly stepped toward them and brought her hand up to her chest before clenching it into a fist. "I may not have formally been crowned queen yet," she told the pair while approaching them, "but if you go against the kingdom, I am the one you will deal with."

"What makes you think I wanna talk to you?" Noel crossed her arms and flashed her typical sour scowl, but it barely masked how shaken she was. The fire in Rosalita's eyes didn't help her nerves at all.

"I think you want to talk because deep down inside, you want a way out of this. You could have easily fled when Matt got hurt. You didn't."

"Don't you judge my motives," Noel shot back, defensively. "I'm doin' what Bro and I need. Nothing more."

"I know you're doing all this for your brother. That I understand." Much to Noel's surprise, Rosalita warmly smiled. Her expression soon faded, however. "You two are on the same side. My brother and I… aren't. That's why I'm offering you a deal. I can see that you're someone lashing out at the world because it's hurt you. I get that. But my brother doesn't. All he sees you as are tools to be used and discarded."

"Uh, that's why we ditched him, remember?" Leon sarcastically interrupted.

"My point is that he surely planned for that possibility," asserted the princess. "Once he has Shaymin and the Golden City, he will dispose of you like he disposed of our parents and Sutter Chiaki. Whether you did it for him or not, you have no place in the kingdom he envisions."

"We've never had a pl-" When the true meaning of Rosalita's words dawned on her, Noel froze.

"Sis?"

" _We've never had a place where we belonged,"_ she thought. _"We came all the way here and our lot in life's still the same. I've been lyin' to myself all along, and I've been lyin' to Bro too… It ain't ever gonna change like this, no matter how much money we make, is it?"_ Though she failed to notice it, Noel was shaking. All she could do was repeat the question, "It ain't ever gonna change like this, no matter how much money we make… is it?"

"You're finally starting to understand…" Rosalita's warm smile returned, and this time it stayed. "You two have done some very bad things in your lives, and I can't forgive you for those crimes, that much is true. What I can do is try to appeal to your better selves, to the people who want to turn over a new leaf. If I can do something that will stop your crimes and also benefit the kingdom, it is my duty to make that decision. Help me stop my brother."

Noel and Leon shared a look at each other. Both of them found Rosalita's offer tempting.

"You're the brain, Sis," Leon said. "Up to you."

For the second time in minutes, Noel lowered her head. _"Now I gotta make the right choice here… this isn't just for me, I gotta do what's right for Bro, too. If I screw this up…"_ A sudden thought hit her, leading Noel to point at Rosalita and bitterly demand, "How do I know you aren't messin' with me just like the little prince was? It's our fault what happened to him." She gestured toward Matt, whose wounds and damaged clothing were being tended to by Elena, with her head. "You're just gonna use us up and then stab us in the back to get your revenge for that, aren't you?!"

At this, Rosalita closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, the fire was back. "Did you order Heatran to do it?" she flatly questioned.

"No!" Noel adamantly denied, stomping her foot on the ground. "Well, uh… I told Heatran to guard the way out. That's it! I never wanted it to go this far!"

"We already told you, Princess, we ain't killers," Leon rushed to add. "We just wanna survive. Like we keep sayin', this job was supposed to be our ticket outta this life. What good is that if we go and fry someone?"

"You know what I see, then?" Rosalita shut her eyes again. When she didn't immediately continue, both Noel and Leon started to shift uncomfortably out of worry over what she would say. "I see that you abandoned your attack on us as soon as you noticed what Heatran did, and you haven't continued it even though doing so would be easy. That tells me that you really did not want this to happen. It backs up what you're telling me. That's why I'm not going to use you. I understand that society has treated you poorly your entire lives, so it may be hard for you to believe, but I want to give you a fair deal and I'm not lying."

Noel crossed her arms and frowned. "What're your terms, then, Princess?"

"You will cooperate with everything I tell you to do," Rosalita firmly explained. "I will not give you the Golden City or Shaymin in exchange, but what I will do is give you a comfortable enough life in La Ciudad Dorada once I'm queen. Just be advised that if you try to betray me, I know about your history in Orre. I'll turn you over to the International Police if you try anything."

"This girl is scary, Sis," Leon grumbled, taking a step back away from the princess. "She ain't nothin' like what that prince told us."

"Fine!" Noel spat. "Fine, we agree. What do you want from us?"

"First, you're going to tell me exactly what my brother told you when he gave you this mission."

"That little creep said we'd probably run into you when we went lookin' for the Golden City," Noel said, never uncrossing her arms. "That's one thing. He never told us you were such a hardened fighter, that's for sure. Nothing 'bout those Pokémon of yours or anything."

"That doesn't surprise me," Rosalita replied, putting her hands on her hips. "He surely already suspected you'd betray him at some point. Telling you the truth about me would only make that more likely. How many Pokémon did he give you, and what did he tell you to do with them?"

"There were eleven of 'em in those clockwork Poké Balls," revealed the hunter. "He told u-"

"Wait, that doesn't add up. Eleven?" Rosalita began to count on her fingers and named off, "Electivire, Magmortar, Probopass, Lickilicky, Togekiss, Yanmega, Muk-"

"No," Noel interrupted, "Muk and Palossand are ours. They ain't ones that he gave us. Heatran ain't in one of those things, either. He told us it would just be followin' us around."

Leon stepped forward and added, "He kept one back from us when he gave us the other eleven. That's why the number's so weird."

"I suspect I know which Pokémon he saved for himself," Rosalita noted. "Why do I see twelve of the clockwork Poké Balls on you, then?"

"The last one was supposed to be for catchin' Shaymin with," answered Noel. "He told us to stage the attack on your castle, grab that magic box off glasses guy over there, catch Shaymin, and then bring it all to him."

"Hand it over. You aren't going to be capturing Shaymin with anything anymore." Noel obeyed Rosalita's order, taking the empty ball off her jacket and handing it to the princess. She promptly dropped it on the ground and stomped on it, the sound of it cracking making both Noel and Leon jump. "So it really is what we thought, everything that's happened was a setup. Frame me for murdering our parents and then allying with a group of outsiders to exchange our treasures for the throne." Rosalita clenched her fist, using the pain of her fingernails cutting into her palm as a distracted from the tears welling up in her eyes. "Why did he have to resort to this… I don't want to admit it, but the Fernando I knew… he might really be gone."

"We have to continue, though," Sheena reminded Rosalita, having approached during the conversation after dropping off the coat with Eleanor. "You've already passed two of the trials. That has to mean something."

"I-It does," replied the princess, her voice shaky. "You're right, we must keep going. That's the only way this will stop. How is Matt doing…?"

"He hasn't woken up yet, but he's completely stable now. He'll be scarred, but otherwise fine."

"Good." Turning back to Noel and Leon, Rosalita said, "I have another question. Do you know how he kept Heatran under control?"

"He showed us some weird machine he's got running," Leon clarified. "It's got some electro… electromag… it's doin' somethin' to a rock inside of it."

"The Magma Stone," Sheena said, inhaling sharply when she recognized the description. "It's a special stone that's found in volcanoes where Heatran lives. They say that it's able to control and even seal Heatran."

"Another thing we're going to have to deal with…" Rosalita sighed. "That can wait. For now, we have a deal. You two cooperate with us and you have nothing to worry about. Betray us, get sent back to Orre and face justice. Those are the terms."

"Fine, we'll take it," Noel agreed. "You really drive a hard bargain, Princess."

"I have to. But I also have a responsibility to those who don't have the luxuries I do. You've suffered enough, so prove you can change and I'll give you the help you've always wanted." Turning to Sheena, Rosalita said, "Please go get the laptop from Eleanor. We'll share the clue."

 **END of CHAPTER 4**


	6. Cold Truths

The character of Jacob Alexison first appeared in the story "Nothing, Everything" by Bay, and is used with her permission. Bay also provided an inspiration for the document written in-universe by Jacob in the first scene of this chapter.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 5:** Cold Truths

-:-

The air in La Ciudad Dorada was cold that night, the sky filled with countless stars. In spite of it being yet another tranquil night the desert kingdom was known for, the normalcy was nothing but a facade. A creeping feeling of dread, the sense that something monumental was going to happen, hung over the remote city. Even the average citizens and tourists, who had little idea of what was unfolding in and around the kingdom, seemed to sense it.

Only a few people knew the reality of what was taking place, among them Cassy, who was still hard at work in Lingote Palace's archive. Her stack of books had barely changed over the hours she'd spent reading, while the pile of empty drink cups next to her had piled up into a large mound of coffee-stained paper. She was paging through a leather-bound folder indexing the various treasures of the kingdom with her left hand while holding her head up with her right.

"Colored shards… fossils… Sparkling Stones, even…" Her eyes lazily glanced over each page before she turned it, but with nothing piquing her interest, she yawned.

At that moment, though, she found something. She nearly passed it because of how used to flipping the pages she was, but she managed to catch herself after noticing a curious name. Cassy straightened up in her seat and blinked to focus.

"From the journal of Jacob Alexison," she read aloud, picking up the document. "Professor Sutter and I have discovered so much during our time in La Ciudad Dorada. It is a shame that the world will not know most of it. Ah well, it is not my decision to make. Perhaps the day will eventually come where the world is ready to learn the truth. I hope I will get to live to see it."

Cassy reached for her current drink and nearly knocked it over. The paper in her hands, yellowed as it was, held her transfixed. She took a long sip before continuing to read.

"Among the many treasures we have witnessed, one that truly fascinates me is the Griseous Orb. Yes, I said Griseous Orb. I'm as surprised to see it here as you are, future reader. Though it prominently features in the mythology of Sinnoh, it is in fact considered one of the Doradan crown jewels. I wonder if the royal family understands its true significance. You see, in Sinnoh, it is tied to the legendary Pokémon Giratina as well as Giratina's home, which we call the Reverse World. The Reverse World, or as some know it the Distortion World, is a place that exists on the opposite side of our own world. The limited research by scientists of our time indicates that it is a dimension where common knowledge is warped and strange. Fitting for a Pokémon that represents antimatter, I suppose.

Sinnohan mythology explains that the Griseous Orb is a condensed physical form of Giratina's power. It is written that the Griseous Orb is able to help Giratina maintain its true form in the gravity of this world. Additionally, the Doradan royal family has informed us that it has the ability to locally alter gravity's effect when used. How accurate these accounts are remain unclear, as the Griseous Orb was said to have not been since the time of kingdom's civil war. Perhaps that is for the best. La Ciudad Dorada has seen ages of peace, and such an item could disturb that if it were to be used as a weapon again. Even separated from Giratina, its powers are not to be underestimated."

When she finished reading the note, Cassy set it down on the table and took a deep breath. _"Finally, a clue. It really is here…"_

-:-

The Griseous Orb glittered from its container atop Fernando's staff, its light pulsing as if it knew someone was thinking about it. Fernando didn't notice. He leaned the staff against the wall of the skyship's hold while he stood nearby, reviewing information projected holographically by the gauntlet he'd donned on his left arm.

"Everything looks ready to go," he said to himself as he flicked through the different windows. He stopped on the last one, which displayed the image of a giant sphere with strange belts strapped onto it, and shook his head. "Including you. I truly hope it doesn't come to this, but if I'm left with no other option, you will ensure that our greatest treasures are never taken."

-:-

Matt Chiaki was not having a good day.

From where he sat in the back of the vehicle en route to Regice's location the next morning, every sensation around him proved to be a stressor of some sort. Noel and Leon sitting right in front of him, the former with her arms crossed and face twisted into a characteristic scowl. The old coat that had been thrust upon him as soon as he woke up. The fact that half his face and some of the left side of his torso were wrapped in the same silk that had hung him up by the legs just a few short days ago. He irritably sighed, and all it did was agitate Noel further.

"I ain't any more thrilled by this than you are," she grumbled. "Thank Princess over there for the idea. She's the one who cut us a better deal than what her brother did."

"Yeah, I know." Matt adjusted his glasses - a new pair he had as a spare in case something happened to his original set - uncomfortably. They fit strangely on his bandaged head.

Sensing Matt's obvious resentment, Leon paused quietly before asking him, "You really doin' okay, dude? Heatran really messed you up… Sis and I never wanted to do somethin' like that…"

"Show me you mean it and I'll believe you." Matt sighed again. "Look, I'm not trying to be cruel to you. You guys just have a lot to make up for."

"And I made that crystal clear to them," Rosalita intervened from her place between Matt and Sheena. "Imperative number one is stopping Fernando. That is why I made the decision to forge an alliance that will also help them out of their life of crime. If you want to blame someone for them being here," she firmly declared, "blame me."

"I can't imagine what I'd do in your position," he admitted. "Maybe you really did make the right choice in the grander scope of things." Feeling the conversation had reached a dead end, Matt decided to change the subject. He started pulling at the heavy, dark material of one of the sleeves on his new coat, then opened and closed his now-gloved hands. "At least I'm not feeling any pain right now. This stuff, though… it's not really my style."

"Our options were limited, unfortunately," Sheena informed him. "The only other thing back there you even plausibly could have worn was a suit of armor."

"I don't think I'd call that a plausible option," Matt replied, dismissing the mere thought of wearing armor with a weak chuckle.

"Tell you what, though…" said Noel, a shiver running through her. Next to her, Leon sneezed. "I think I'm speakin' for both Bro and I when I tell you we'd gladly take anything warmer than what we got now."

Matt hadn't thought much about it before, but once Noel called his attention to them, he saw her point. The siblings' jackets were far too light for the rugged, snowy terrain on the far side of the mountain range. He briefly considered giving his new coat to one of them, but swiftly remembered that it was the only thing protecting his bandaged side from the cold.

"I'm sorry," Rosalita apologized to them. "I should have thought to fetch some coats for you before we left, too."

"I guess it ain't the worst problem we could be havin' right now." Leon stretched his neck and called to Eleanor, who was driving the vehicle, "Hey, cabbie! Can we get there a little faster so this can get done?"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" Eleanor shouted back, not taking her eyes off the path ahead. "I can't make this thing fly over rough terrain like this!"

"We shouldn't be too far from our destination, anyway." Rosalita pressed her lips together and stared down at Shaymin, who was sitting in her lap. "The final trial, Regice's… I must confess, I'm nervous."

"Just breathe, Rosalita," Sheena encouraged her. "Remember, you've passed two already, and you know who your final opponent is. That allows you to be ready."

"It's not Regice I'm worried about. Not entirely." The princess balled her hands into fists, prompting Shaymin to look up at her. "The closer we come to the conclusion of my trial, the closer we come to whatever Fernando's endgame is. I'm sure he has something prepared, some sort of plan, to ambush us when we least expect. What would the time we least expect it be? When we think we've won."

"Maybe I ain't got a right to be talkin' here," Noel crudely interjected, "but I say let him bring it. I believe you when you say he was usin' Bro and me, Princess. Now I'm spoilin' to serve up some revenge, and ruinin' his big moment sounds like just the ticket."

"Thank you for the assistance." Rosalita didn't lift her head. "However, it's what lies beyond that which scares me the most. I don't know if I'm ready to give up the life I have now, even though I know the people need me. I love being able to participate in our riding pageants with Adiela, competing in the traditional sporting events of our kingdom… I just don't know if I'm ready to give it all up. Such things aren't quite becoming of a queen."

"Maybe you could be the one to change that? No one ever said that the crown had to be _unchanging_ ," Sheena suggested. "Don't feel bad about being nervous. That's a natural human reaction."

"That's true, I suppose." Rosalita's expression brightened, but she remained fixated on Shaymin. "Thank you, Sheena. I really owe all of you a debt. Now that we're at the final trial I'm thinking about the support you've given me."

From its place in Rosalita's lap, Shaymin squirmed. It had its own worries, and they distracted it to the point where no flowers sprouted in response to Rosalita's gratitude. Unable to sit still any longer, Shaymin jumped down to the floor of the vehicle and plodded toward the driver's seat.

"Shaymin, is something the matter?" the princess wondered.

"I told you, I hate the cold, yes." This was a lie. The cold did bother Shaymin, but the reason for its consternation was something else. Something far heavier, planted deep within its heart. It frowned and felt glad it had its back to the humans. _"Every time I come back to this place, I feel the same shame, yes… and the shame only gets worse because I never can fix what I did…"_

"Finally somethin' you and I have in common," Noel remarked, completely missing the mythical Pokémon's body language. Her eyes happened to twitch over to Matt for the briefest of moments, but even that was enough time for her to spot a glow coming from his bag. "Hey, hey, what's goin' on with that?!" she exclaimed, pointing squarely at the light.

Neither Matt nor any of the others had noticed the now familiar glow. Once Noel called their attention to it, Matt hurried to retrieve its source, the puzzle box.

"It really is magic…" Leon whispered, awestruck.

"This happens every time we get close to the next puzzle to find the Golden City," Matt explained to the siblings. "I guess it's a guide."

"Eleanor, we must stop here!" Rosalita called to the front of the vehicle. "Regice is nearby!"

"Roger that, Rosa!" Eleanor slowly brought her hands together over the glowing control panel, gradually bringing the machine to a stop. She then got up and joined the others just in time to see Shaymin climbing back up onto Rosalita's shoulder. "I take it we're ready to go?"

Before the full question had even left Eleanor's mouth, Rosalita was already climbing out of the vehicle. The others were left to catch up.

"Looks like you two aren't the only ones who want to be done with this," Matt sarcastically said as he stuffed the cube back into his bag. Even though he directed the comment to Noel and Leon, Eleanor was the one who laughed.

"Don't you joke like that," Noel sniped back.

"Fine, I won't."

By that time, Sheena had gotten off the vehicle as well. Matt followed, but when he turned back to help Eleanor down, she just jumped off and landed perfectly on her feet. Leon ended up assisting his sister by taking her hand as she stepped down instead. Once the entire group assembled, they stared out over the bleak, rugged terrain before them. There was little but rocks and gravel as far as the eye could see, mostly covered by at least a thin layer of snow. Compared to the oasis of La Ciudad Dorada or the wooded mountains, Regice's domain was another world entirely. Even the sky was different, filled with a monochromatic grey.

"Regice is out there somewhere…" Sheena said aloud to no one in particular.

"Luckily we have a way to find it," Matt replied. He took the puzzle box out of his bag and held it up in front of himself. Its light brightened when he did so, much like it had for Regirock and Registeel. "We just follow where it leads us by seeing where its light is strongest," he explained to the group's two new members.

"Then get followin' it already," Noel complained. Next to her, Leon sneezed from the cold.

Before Matt could respond to Noel, Rosalita grabbed his arm. "Let us make haste," she said, glaring ahead at the wintry expanse. "It is not just Regice that's out there. The future of La Ciudad Dorada hangs in the balance… as does the fate of my family."

Matt started to accede to Rosalita's request, but he stopped himself from speaking when he saw her face. Her eyes and lips were trembling subtly, betraying her true feelings in spite of how hard she was trying to focus on her mission. Sheena and Eleanor noticed it too, and they shared a knowing glance with Matt.

"Let us go." Rosalita told her companions, not letting on whether or not she knew they were aware of her roiling emotions.

The princess took the lead in trudging out into the rocky tundra. Matt quickly followed, making sure to keep the cube held out in front of him. They were trailed by Eleanor and Sheena, but Noel and Leon initially hung back.

"Sis…" Leon whispered, "you think we're doin' the right thing? Cuttin' and runnin' like this?"

"I don't think we got much choice," Noel replied, scowling. "We got in way over our heads with this one. I let you down, Bro." Noel's scowl turned into a depressed pout that she hid from her brother by turning her head. "I got greedy when I agreed to take this job. We shoulda never got involved in this."

Seeing his sister so downcast shook Leon to his soul. He was used to always having her confidence to look to as an easy way to reassure himself in times of doubt.

-:-

The hike in search for Regice was a punishing one, thanks to both the terrain and the climate. Matt couldn't fully understand how either Rosalita or Eleanor were managing the trek over the stones and snow as well as they were. He could at least guess that Rosalita's blazing determination was keeping her focused on her goal, but Eleanor was practically leaping through the landscape despite her completely unsuitable clothing. He and Sheena were doing just fine on their own, while Noel and Leon avoided the issue altogether by walking next to Heatran.

They'd been traveling for some time, following the box's steadily growing light, until it suddenly and sharply intensified.

"Wait, you guys!" Matt cried out, bringing the others to a stop. "I think we're close!"

"You're right," Rosalita agreed. She hopped down from the slightly elevated stone she was on, walked to Matt, and looked around. Shaymin stuck its head out of her cloak, but remained safely nestled in its warmth. "There's nothing around here," she observed, "but that does not mean a thing by itself. Every time we do this, a passage forward appears before us."

"About that…" Sheena piped up. The rest of the group turned to her, but she said nothing more. She simply pointed down and swept away the snow around her with her foot.

Matt, Eleanor and Rosalita, all understanding the meaning of this action, hastily mimicked it. The reason for doing so soon became clear to them.

Under their feet, initially hidden by a thin layer of snow, was a vivid mural depicting Regice, its two siblings, and their master Regigigas.

"It's here…" Eleanor said to herself, before raising her voice and repeating, "It's right here!"

"What's right here, girl?" Leon asked, unaware of what was about to take place.

"Here, watch," replied the engineer. Turning her head towards Matt, she told him, "Use the box so we can find the next clue."

"You act like I know exactly how this thing works," Matt sighed. Nevertheless, he raised the cube toward the murky sky. He was unsure of what effect his action would have, if it had any at all. When the puzzle box completely erupted with light, he was so surprised he nearly dropped it.

The light carved a wide, circular space out of the snow around the group, fully uncovering the mural in the course of doing so. All Matt, Rosalita and the others could do was watch in awe as the process unfolded, staring intently as the gleam intensified until it grew so bright that they had to shield their eyes.

"Wh-what's goin' on?!" Noel sputtered.

"Just watch and you'll see something amazing!" Matt yelled back, still covering his eyes.

Right when the light reached the peak of its intensity, it vanished just as suddenly as it appeared. All that was left was a single trail leading from the center of the mural to a point in the stones surrounding the area.

"That where Regice is?" Noel's anger and aggression had melted away, replaced by a sense of pure wonder at what she was witnessing. She couldn't help but be fixated on the spot the trail of light led to.

"It's not where Regice is, technically," Matt explained. "It's more accurate to say it's where the way to make Regice appear is."

"There's something strange here, though," Rosalita ventured as she looked around at their surroundings. "The tower that used to stand here was destroyed in the civil war, that much I know. Yet there's no shrine appearing this time?" While heading to the spot indicated by the light, she placed her finger on her chin and mused to herself, "Perhaps the tower itself was the shrine. But if that was the case, why was it not rebuilt?"

 _"Please just solve the puzzle, yes…"_ Shaymin thought. It buried its face in Rosalita's cloak. _"Defeat Regice and leave this place…"_

Taking no notice of Shaymin's mood, Rosalita lowered herself to examine what the light led to. There, half-buried in the rocks, was a stone tablet with a Braille message written on it.

"Matt, please come here," the princess said over her shoulder. "I need your assistance reading this.."

"Now what's he doin'?" Noel asked Sheena as they watched Matt go to Rosalita's side.

"Every one of these trials has involved at least one puzzle written out in Braille." Sheena saw both Noel and Leon staring inquisitively at her, so she clarified, "It's a way of writing that translates letters into patterns of dots. He learned to read it because his sister is blind."

Noel could feel her heart sink when she heard that fact. She turned, slowly and stiffly, to face Matt and Rosalita while they uncovered the tablet. _"He's just like me… watchin' out for his sis like I watch out for Bro."_ Both horrified and disgusted with herself, Noel covered her mouth with her hands. _"I've been doin' this to him and didn't even know…"_

The siblings hung back as Eleanor and Sheena joined Matt and Rosalita in examining the tablet, which they'd laid on top of the stones that once covered it. Matt wasted no time in reading over the message spread across its surface.

"Can you tell what it says?" Sheena asked.

"It's not a cipher this time," he replied, "it's actual words and sentences, but the way it's written seems a little… odd."

"What do you mean?" the princess wondered, cocking her head to the side.

"Listen and I think you'll get it right away." Before beginning to read the Braille, Matt held his chin. When his fingers touched the bandages, he cringed at their still-alien feeling on his skin. "The one who shall wear the crown, listen, you. Here is the end and the beginning. The body of ice shall only awaken when the one who most fears the cold braves it. Only the one who shall wear the crown can guide the way."

"Yeah, this one's definitely asking for Shaymin," Eleanor teased the Pokémon, half-closing her eyes and smirking mischievously. "It's about time that was the answer."

"You haven't made any secret of the cold bothering you," Sheena added. "This one's easy."

"Hey, that's not funny!" Shaymin shot back from its perch in Rosalita's cloak. "The cold is really awful to me, yes!"

"I certainly do see why you said the message was odd," Rosalita said to Matt, paying no mind to Shaymin's fuming. She only happened to turn to the mythical Pokémon after it was done, asking it, "Did you create that clue yourself? It sounded very much like how you speak in your other form."

"Not only that, the clue that led us here sounded like how you speak normally," Matt elaborated. "You _were_ creating your own clues, weren't you?"

"Only these two, yes," Shaymin confessed.

"Why just these, then?" Rosalita's swift response only made Shaymin regret answering so specifically. "You created the messages to lead here and call forth Regice. The tower that was here was probably Regice's shrine, but it was never rebuilt after the civil war. All these circumstances are awfully strange… something else happened here, didn't it?"

Shaymin didn't say anything right away. It tried to shrink back into Rosalita's cloak, but there was no escaping the group's collective gaze. _"Now cannot be the time,"_ it finally decided. Popping back out of its hiding place, it dodged Rosalita's question by saying, "We must focus on defeating Fernando for now, yes."

All four humans glanced knowingly at each other. Shaymin's attempt at a non-answer immediately led all four to conclude something had indeed taken place that Shaymin was covering up. Matt, Sheena and Eleanor all weighed the idea of confronting it, but none of them could get up the nerve to do so before Rosalita spoke up.

"You are correct," the princess said, allowing Shaymin's lie to slide for the time being. "Preventing Fernando's coup is of paramount importance right now. So… summoning Regice is not as simple as merely bringing you here, is it?"

"Hm?" Shaymin was caught off guard by its companion's inquiry. "Well, I do hate the cold, yes…"

"But you could hate the cold _even more_ ," Rosalita deduced. "You are a Grass-type Pokémon," she reasoned as she fetched the container with her preserved Gracidea within it. "But your other form is a Grass-and-Flying-type. That means your other form is twice as weak to Ice. I apologize for making you transform in this climate, especially after how anxious it made you earlier, but there is no other option."

"Yes, yes, the cold is what I hate the most about this place," Shaymin again lied. It climbed out of Rosalita's cloak and edged toward the Gracidea. When the pollen wafting from the blossom made contact, Shaymin's body became cloaked in golden light.

"What's that now?" Leon uttered. He and his sister had drawn closer during the rest of the group's deliberation over the puzzle, and they watched in awe as Shaymin floated into the air and began to transform.

"Remember Shaymin's other form?" Eleanor said over her shoulder. "This is what happens when it assumes that form."

As soon as Shaymin completed its transformation into its Sky Forme and emerged from the cocoon of light, it sneezed. "It's time to make haste, you!" it exclaimed to Rosalita.

"I am ready!" the princess declared in response, spreading her arms. "Shaymin, call forth Regice!"

Heeding Rosalita's call, Shaymin landed directly on the stone tablet. "Listen to me, you!" it called out into the cold air. "A new leader has come to claim the crown! Appear to us and put her to the test, you!"

Nothing happened at first. In fact, it almost seemed like Shaymin's entreaty made the area even calmer. The air went still and quiet, but just before any of the group could question this strange turn of events, the sound of a high-pitched, vaguely electronic beeping reached their ears.

"It's starting again…" Sheena murmured.

"That's right, you!" exclaimed Shaymin. It was using its intense mood to try and fight back the chill in the air. "He is her-"

Before Shaymin could even finish warning the humans of Regice's arrival, the titan erupted from an elevated snowbank. It crash landed on its narrow, pointed feet and loomed over the circular arena, repeating the syllables of its name in a screeching, buzzing voice as the landscape reflected brilliantly in its crystalline body.

"That's Regice?!" Noel could no longer keep her composure, seeing Regice's continued buzzing and beeping as a threat. Turning to Leon, she warned, "Bro, we're gonna have to fight our way outta this…"

"One step ahead of you on that, Sis!"

The siblings fumbled for the Poké Balls containing their partners, Muk and Palossand. Matt happened to hear their exchange, however, and he lunged to stop them before they could act.

"No!" he cried out. "This is how it's supposed to be!"

"What're you sayin'?" Noel demanded. "Can't you see? That thing's comin' after us!"

"You're wrong." As he gave his explanation, Matt retrieved his laptop from his bag and began recording with it. "It's a ritual. Rosalita has to defeat Regice and the other two in direct combat to prove herself worthy to lead the kingdom. Regice isn't here for any of us."

"So that's what Princess meant when she said they beat Regirock and Registeel…" Leon reasoned.

"Regice!" Rosalita called up to the titan. She stretched her arms out to her sides, touching her thumbs to her middle fingers as she did so. "I am Rosalita of the House of Fernando, and the crown princess of La Ciudad Dorada! I have come before you to prove myself and claim my birthright!"

Regice stood still, only acknowledging Rosalita's declaration by flashing its dots. Everyone assembled before it could tell that it was pondering the princess's words despite it not having anything resembling a normal face.

Finally, Regice raised its arms, brightened all its dots, and let out an electronic-sounding shriek. It was plain to all present that the titan accepted Rosalita's challenge even before it floated down to the arena floor, while Shaymin landed on one of the highest stones overlooking the ring.

"This is the last of my trials against the Three Pillars," Rosalita told the others, urging them back with her arm. "It's going to be the hardest, I'm sure… but I am…" The princess shut her eyes and thought of her beloved family. Her father, her mother… even her brother. She saw them all there, proudly watching her. Yes, that was the person Fernando really was, of that she was certain. All he had to see was that she was capable of leading the kingdom, then he would come to his senses. She truly believed he would. She _needed_ to. "I am sure I will succeed!" she finally declared, fixing her intense gaze on Regice. Fetching one of her Poké Balls, she threw it and called out, "Leonel, come forth!"

Rosalita's Bibarel materialized from the Poké Ball already on all fours. A small shiver ran through his body from head to toe, but the sight of his opponent helped him push it from his mind. For its part, Regice acknowledged Leonel's presence by running a flash across its dots, then raised its arms to the sky and shrilled. A red aura similar to Registeel's burst from its body.

"Making yourself stronger by tapping into Gaia's energy," Rosalita noted. "I am not surprised you would do that as well. But I can also do such a thing. Leonel, Swords Dance!"

Much as they had during his battle with Regirock, the blade-like lights surrounded Leonel and orbited him for a moment before being absorbed into his body. Leonel briefly radiated a red aura as intense as Regice's, tensing his muscles and growling as the lights boosted his strength.

Regice remained largely still in the face of its challenger powering himself up. Its apparent serenity was such that off to the sidelines, Matt, Eleanor, Sheena, and even Noel and Leon felt unsettled from looking at it. The dots on the ends of its cross-shaped pattern lit up, followed by the next ones in line. When the centermost dots illuminated, a brilliant, rainbow-colored beam shot out from them. Leonel took the Signal Beam directly to his face, but it had little effect besides forcing him to fall back and sit up.

"Be careful with that!" Matt warned Rosalita when he saw Leonel blinking off the remainder of Regice's attack. "Signal Beam can leave your Pokémon confused!"

"I'll be mindful of that," Rosalita replied.

Regice suddenly pitched back and screeched even louder, pointing its dots toward the sky as they emanated bright red light. Rosalita recognized what it was doing, thanks to Registeel calling for Xatu the previous day, and couldn't help but wonder what would happen next.

The answer came in the form of a gruff cry that sounded across the battlefield. An Abomasnow crashed through one of the surrounding drifts and leapt down to join Regice, his great weight shaking the ground when he landed. His entrance also turned the sky even darker, and the clouds churned as a storm of wind, snow and hail whipped up.

"Ah, it's Abomasnow's Snow Warning!" Sheena exclaimed, bracing herself against the sudden gusts and shielding her face with her arm, much like Matt and Eleanor were doing. Noel and Leon, meanwhile, simply pushed themselves even closer to the warmth of Heatran's body.

"This will be trouble," Rosalita said to herself, her expression darkening. Unlike the others, she paid the snowstorm no mind, acting as if it didn't even exist. "I did not account for the possibility of a Grass-type… still, I shall stay with my plan. Leonel, Defense Curl!"

The princess's Bibarel jumped into the air at her behest, rolling into a ball before he landed. His body was temporarily cloaked in yet another aura, this one blue, as his physical fortitude heightened.

Anticipating that Regice and Abomasnow would take the opportunity for an attack, Rosalita mentally shut out the world around her so she could focus squarely on them. Regice beeped for a moment - processing Leonel's actions, Rosalita reasoned - but what it did next initially surprised her. Instead of mounting an offense, the titan again raised its arms. Brilliant, rainbow-colored light radiated from its geometric fingers and wrapped around both Regice and its ally.

Rosalita took a step back and ground her heel into the snow under her feet. She recognized what Regice had done after all. "And at the end of the road, the body of ice shall cloak itself in the polar lights…" she recited, remembering the words in the book she and Fernando had read years earlier. "Aurora Veil…"

While the princess was lost in thought, Abomasnow took action. He dashed forward, displaying enough unexpected speed to snap Rosalita back to reality. She gasped in both surprise and dismay when she saw Abomasnow right on top of Leonel, getting ready to strike with a glowing, green club formed around his arm. Neither the Bibarel nor his trainer could react fast enough to Abomasnow's Wood Hammer to counteract it.

"Leonel!" Rosalita cried out, watching her Pokémon tumble through the air while still rolled up. Seeing that he'd maintained his posture from Defense Curl swiftly gave her an idea, however. "Use Rollout off the rocks!" she called to him.

Leonel gave no clear acknowledgement of Rosalita's command, but he did hear it. Using the momentum from the Wood Hammer he was hit with, he propelled himself off a stone on the arena's edge and spun right back towards Abomasnow. The impact made the Grass-and-Ice-type stumble back and grunt, even as the Aurora Veil's gleam shielded him from feeling the brunt of the Rollout. Leonel, meanwhile, pitched high into the air.

"Keep going, Leonel!" Rosalita shouted in encouragement.

Though he again gave no direct reply, Leonel felt heartened by his trainer's words. He spun faster and cut through the snow and hail, aiming directly at Regice. The titan shot another Signal Beam at him, but he broke through it and struck Regice squarely in the center of its body. Regice groaned, its voice briefly becoming deep and distorted while Aurora Veil's light glittered across its form.

Just as Leonel separated from Regice, however, Abomasnow loomed up behind him.

"Watch out!"

Rosalita's warning came too late. Abomasnow hit Leonel from behind with an Ice Punch, while Regice blasted him with a point-blank Blizzard. There was no way to tell which one had done it, but Leonel was left frozen in a block of ice.

"That's not good…" Sheena said to herself.

"I don't have any other option," Rosalita hissed through clenched teeth. "Leonel, try your best to break free and keep using Rollout!"

Several small cracks appeared in the ice, and seeing them gave Rosalita a flicker of hope that Leonel would pull through. She clenched her fists, put her foot forward in the snow and cheered him on, but no amount of optimism could save him. Just as one of the fissures grew wide enough for Leonel to reach out, Regice unceremoniously dropped a pile of glowing rocks on him, while Abomasnow slammed a Wood Hammer down squarely on the Bibarel's head. The blunt brutality of the pair's assault left not only Rosalita but her audience of supporters stunned as they watched Leonel collapse into the snow.

Regice and Abomasnow then backed away from Leonel's still form. Rosalita looked at them and cocked her head, unsure at first of what exactly they were doing. It took Regice blinking its dots and beeping at her for her to realize that they were allowing her the opportunity to bring in her next combatant without interruption.

"How chivalrous," she chuckled to herself. "It is a nice thing to see the honor of the royal court exist even out in this wilderness." After recalling Leonel to his Poké Ball, Rosalita held it in her hand and said to it, "Thank you, Leonel. You fought valiantly, as you always have."

"I'm so glad we didn't try to capture that thing," Noel uttered, dumbfounded at what she'd seen. "If that's the power of a legendary Pokémon…"

"I'm thinkin' we got lucky then, Sis…" Leon added. "Shaymin's gotta be even tougher, and we got away with only a taste…"

"I'm with you on that, Bro. And Princess said she's beaten two of 'em already…"

The siblings turned to the elevated outcropping where Shaymin was perched, only to find that it was no longer alone. Many local Pokémon - specifically several silver-blue Sandshrew and Sandslash, two Delibird, a Vanilluxe, a Froslass, and a Mamoswine with his family of Swinub and Piloswine - had assembled to watch Regice in battle.

"Look at 'em all, Bro!" Noel exclaimed in surprise, bringing one hand to her mouth and pointing at the crowd with the other.

Matt, Sheena and Eleanor, having overheard the siblings' conversation, also took notice of the gathering around Shaymin. "Well, would you look at that," Matt said to the others, making sure to get some footage of the Pokémon with his laptop. "They all understand the significance of this event, I'd say." Sheena and Eleanor nodded in agreement.

Within the ancient arena, Rosalita started to take out another Poké Ball. As she did so, the Mamoswine stomped up next to Shaymin and grunted to it. Shaymin tilted its head and carefully listened to him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know it hasn't been that long since last time," the mythical Pokémon replied, brushing snow from its face. "A lot is taking place back home. But this one's tough. Just watch, you!"

Right before she threw the Poké Ball, however, a sudden thought made Rosalita pause. She turned the sphere over in her hand and stared at it. "Adiela, you have the best matchup against Regice and Abomasnow… but I just saw Regice use Ancient Power. If you faint now, I will not be able to call upon you later. I did not want to have to do this, but I have no choice…" The princess returned Adiela's ball to under her cloak and fetched out another. "Isabel, everyone… I apologize for sending you into battle like this. Please fight as long as you can. We will need to tackle this trial as one if we are to overcome it."

With that, Rosalita threw the Poké Ball, and her Luxray materialized in the hailstorm. Isabel pawed at the ground and shook her body, growling as she acclimated herself to the harsh environment. She then let out an earth-shaking roar that made Abomasnow shrink back, even as Regice displayed no reaction whatsoever.

Recalling her studying with Fernando again, Rosalita said to herself, "The Three Pillars stand strong and true. None shall compromise their Clear Body." A tiny laugh slipped from her lips. "So Intimidate didn't work on you, Regice, but it sure did on your partner. That will be enough for now. Isabel, use Superpower on Regice!"

Isabel's muscles swelled, and she bound straight into the titan. Even though Aurora Veil gave it some degree of protection, Regice was driven into a snowbank behind itself, shrieking all the while.

The stress of assailing Regice with such strength forced Isabel to stop and catch her breath. That brief downtime was all Regice needed to turn the tide back in its favor. It exploded from the snow with a blast of icy wind, fueled by the storm Abomasnow brought with him. Between her own weariness and the way the hail strengthened the Blizzard, Isabel ended up taking the full brunt of the frigid assault.

"Isabel!" Rosalita exclaimed in dismay. Her Luxray had avoided being frozen the way Leonel had been, but as Isabel picked herself up and shook the frost from her fur, her shivering made plain that the chill badly weakened her. "Isabel, I'm sorry… are you able to continue?"

Isabel braced herself and growled at Regice and Abomasnow, a response that heartened Rosalita. Before the princess could give another direction, however, Abomasnow caught both her and the Luxray by surprise. He locked his gaze with Isabel's, and his eyes briefly filled with yellow and red colors to match hers. Once it faded, he lifted his bulky arms above his head and released a guttural roar. Much like how Isabel's roar had sapped his strength, Abomasnow's had the same effect on her.

"No way!" Matt had to adjust his glasses to be sure his impression was correct, but when he did he almost dropped his laptop. "That's the _last_ thing I expected to see here!"

"That looked awfully familiar," Noel remarked. "You know what that was, Glasses, don't you?"

"I'll just ignore that…" Matt sighed. "But yes, your memory is correct. Role Play, just like my Hitmonchan used when you attacked the garden. Abomasnow took Intimidate for itself."

Rosalita didn't hear Matt's explanation, but she'd already worked out the same conclusion. "That's going to make things a little more difficult…" she said, furrowing her eyebrows. "It is not ideal, but I have little choice. Isabel, Thunderbolt!"

Electricity erupted from Isabel's fur and arced through the frigid air until it struck Regice, but it had little effect on the titan. At first, Regice simply stood still and absorbed the lightning with aid from the cover given by Aurora Veil. It waited until Isabel began to tire, and as soon as Thunderbolt's intensity dropped even a tiny bit, Regice seized its opportunity. It raced straight for Isabel, breaking through the flagging remains of her Thunderbolt, before blowing a gale of icy wind into her at point-blank range. She hissed in distress as she was coated in frost and thrown by Blizzard's force, only for Abomasnow to catch her by the leg and fling her into the ground. Rosalita recognized what was coming and hurried to retrieve Isabel's Poké Ball, but she failed to reach it in time. Abomasnow ended the clash even more decisively by bringing one last Wood Hammer down on the prone Luxray.

Without a word delaying her, Rosalita recalled Isabel to the safety of the sphere, then stared down at it. "I'm sorry you had to go through that…" she whispered to its occupant. Her eyelids were trembling without her notice. "If only I were stronger…"

A memory suddenly emerged in her mind, giving Rosalita pause. She shut her eyes, allowing her perception to fill with an image she'd forgotten until then. It was so vivid she actually wondered _how_ she'd lost it. She felt as if she was standing right there in her elegantly furnished bedchamber, watching her younger self sitting on her silken sheets. The Rosalita of the past had Elena, then a green caterpillar with a leaf collar, sitting peacefully on her lap, happily cooing as Rosalita stroked her head. Fernando's younger self stood a few feet away.

 _"I was serious when I said I would make you my knight. You'll help me keep our home safe, right?"_

 _"Of course I will, Fernando! We promised each other, right?"_ The young princess ceased petting her Pokémon, causing the Sewaddle to look up at her. _"But that's such a long time away. Father and Mother aren't going anywhere soon. Let's just…"_

 _"Rosalita, this is serious!"_ Fernando interrupted. Even in his youth, he was passionate about defending the kingdom. _"We have great responsibilities placed upon us. One day, I will be called upon to lead everyone who lives here. When that time comes, I will need you to help by fighting beside me as my knight. You must be able to toss aside any and all doubts and do what is necessary to emerge victorious. That's not just for you, it's for Adiela, Elena and any of the other Pokémon who are at your side."_

 _"I can't watch them get hurt,"_ replied the Rosalita of the past. _"If I make poor decisions, they will be the ones who pay the price. For now, I can't wait to be able to enter the Alliance Battle myself. To take Adiela into a pageant. That's what I want to do. Fighting with so much on the line is kind of scary."_

 _"I understand your feelings,"_ Fernando offered, _"but when a strong bond of gratitude exists between trainer and Pokémon, they will understand you. I've learned that Pokémon enter battle alongside humans because they choose to. Their assistance is an expression of gratitude for the fact that we live in peace as one with them. If you fight for a noble goal, they will understand and come to your side."_

"If you fight for a noble goal, they will understand and come to your side," Rosalita repeated to herself as she opened her eyes. She immediately saw Regice and Abomasnow waiting patiently for her, then looked to Shaymin and the crowd of Pokémon overlooking her trial. At that point, she could no longer hold her emotions in check. Small, narrow tears rolled down her cheeks as she quietly said to herself, "Is that what this is, Fernando? Your noble goal? I hate what you have done, but your cause, your reason for your deeds…" Rosalita's despair started to subside when she again regarded the Poké Ball in her hand, replaced with a swell of what she considered determination instead of confidence. "Then stopping you is mine. I swore I would do whatever I needed to protect our home… and it is my allies' home as well. You all understand," she addressed the sphere, "of that I am certain. Please grant me your assistance, and I will lead you to victory."

While Rosalita pondered her next move, the hailstorm tapered off. She watched the clouds Abomasnow had summoned break apart and reveal the calmer ones underneath.

"Without that, Regice's Blizzard will be easier to evade," she observed, before taking notice of the rainbow light still enveloping both of her opponents. "Aurora Veil is not yet gone, however… this may be the only time I get a chance to do this." The princess stashed Isabel's Poké Ball away in her cloak, selected another, and threw it. Her Staraptor, Reyes, appeared from it, spreading his wings and shrilling in a display that turned Intimidate against the Ice-type duo once again. Rosalita went to his side and set her left hand on his back, saying to him, "Reyes, I have a plan I need your help in executing. Only you can do it. Are you ready?"

"Star," Reyes trilled in affirmation.

"Most excellent." Rosalita smiled, stepped back, and swept her arm in front of herself in a regal, authoritative motion. "Reyes, I call upon you to use Double Team!"

Reyes took to the air, beating his wings so forcefully that the snow around him blew away. Regice spun around in place, beeping as it called forth another Ancient Power, but before the glowing stones could reach Reyes, he screeched and split off a number of illusionary copies of himself. With the true Reyes obscured within the cluster, Regice couldn't accomplish anything beyond cutting down a few of the illusory Staraptor. Abomasnow tried to assist by leaping up at swinging an Ice Punch at one of them, only for his fist to pass cleanly through the copy he ended up targeting.

At that point, as Abomasnow landed at Regice's side again, the rainbow light of Aurora Veil finally faded from around their bodies. Seeing this, Rosalita called out, "Now is your chance, Reyes! Hit Regice with Close Combat!"

All of Reyes's doubles swarmed over the titan, further concealing their creator while they battered Regice with their wings, beaks and talons. The legendary Pokémon, angered by the way the barrage took chips out of its body, bellowed electronically and raised an Ancient Power around itself. The rocks it threw into the air dispelled Reyes's copies, but the real one flipped back to escape direct harm. Abomasnow swung an icy fist after Reyes, but failed to reach him.

"Now is the time for what only you can do, Reyes." Rosalita extended her arm toward Regice, then snapped her fist closed. "Final Gambit!"

Reyes voiced a mighty caw that echoed throughout the barren landscape. The Staraptor drew every ounce of strength he could muster from deep within himself, creating an orange aura that outlined his body. He then dive-bombed Regice like a missile, slicing through the air in the blink of an eye. When they collided, Reyes's aura exploded, violently flinging them back apart. Regice was caught by a pile of stones behind it, but no such safety net existed for Reyes, leaving him to fall and tumble through the snow.

"A move that sacrifices all the user's energy to inflict equal damage to the target," Matt said to Eleanor, Sheena, Noel and Leon. "That's what Final Gambit is."

"Princess had somethin' like that up her sleeve all this time?" A chill ran down Noel's spine, but it wasn't from the cold. "We're real lucky we stopped when we did, ain't we?"

"What was holdin' her back, then?" wondered Leon. "Not that I'm complainin', though…"

"I think she was still struggling to accept that she had to fight with nothing at all held back," Sheena ventured, watching as Reyes picked himself up and Rosalita went to his side. "Now, though, I sense a new level of resolve in her. Does she still harbor some doubts? I believe so, but at the same time, I can tell she has grown enough to face them."

"I am proud of you, Reyes," Rosalita told her Pokémon while helping him up. He cooed softly to her in response, and she smiled at him. "Once we're done here, I will help heal you from doing that. For now, please rest." The princess held up Reyes's Poké Ball, calling him back into the sphere. She then turned back to Regice, who was still lying against the stones that broke its momentum. Abomasnow was standing between it and Rosalita, watching her warily. "I will not yield," she told the pair, her voice firm and eyes burning with conviction. "For my brother, my people, and those who have come before me, I _will_ defeat you!"

At that, Rosalita flung the Poké Ball she'd been clutching under her cloak. Her Shiftry, Deivi, emerged from it with a cluster of glittering stars surrounding him. Regice emerged from the indentation once an opponent appeared, but its dots changed to shine with a menacing red glow. Its shrill, buzzing voice had also vanished, discarded in favor of a deep, electronic croak that struck fear into the audience of the battle.

Rosalita, on the other hand, wasn't fazed at all. In fact, Regice's newfound aggression only seemed to harden her resolve even further. She pursed her lips, allowing a small puff of steam to slip from her mouth, and pulled back her arm in preparation to give Deivi an order. Before she could voice her intent, however, Regice took further action. A wave of green energy flowed from the dots on its face and merged with Abomasnow, causing a cocoon of light to form around him. Said cocoon shattered moments later, revealing that the titan's Grass-and-Ice-type ally had undergone an unexpected metamorphosis. He'd grown at least a full foot taller, his fur had drastically lengthened, and the four cones on his back had become giant spikes of ice, not unlike those on Regice's back. The four spikes were so heavy, in fact, that Abomasnow was forced to lean forward and support his newfound bulk with both his arms and legs.

"Mega Evolution?!" Eleanor gasped in surprise. "It's a phenomenon where certain Pokémon temporarily assume an even higher form of evolution during battle. I've read about it back home in Kalos… but I thought a trainer was needed to activate it. How did Regice do it?"

"That green light must have been a wave of Gaia," Sheena realized. "You're right, normally it's the Key Stone held by a trainer that harnesses the life energy of the Pokémon in question, but we know Regice can draw upon Gaia itself. That is probably the way it carried out Mega Evolution."

Amidst their awed chatter, the group failed to notice one other event set off by Abomasnow's Mega Evolution while they conversed. As soon as Mega Abomasnow had emerged from his cocoon, the churning clouds returned to the sky. It wasn't until snow and hail started falling once again that they became aware of it.

"I think it's a safe guess that Mega Abomasnow's Ability is also Snow Warning," Matt said, his voice strained from the irritation he felt.

"What've you got to complain about, Glasses?" Noel complained. Both she and Leon were pressing themselves against Heatran again, desperate for any amount of warmth they could get. "Bro and I are the ones who ain't prepared for this!"

On the battlefield, Rosalita pulled up the front of her cloak to partially cover her mouth. "You've certainly prepared well for this, Regice… over all these centuries, it's only natural. Despite that, I will see this through no matter what you do! Deivi," she called to her shining Shiftry, "Low Kick!"

It took a moment for Deivi to find his footing in the hail. His narrow feet made it hard for him to stay balanced on the wet rock, but once he stabilized himself, he was able to slide toward Regice with ease.

Regice, however, was having none of it. The titan buzzed at its ally, leading Abomasnow to lumber between it and Deivi to run interference. His great weight following his Mega Evolution only made Deivi's Low Kick even more potent; when the Shiftry's foot collided with Abomasnow's leg, the Grass-and-Ice-type flipped helplessly forward while his assailant slid underneath him. His act still had its intended outcome despite his injury, as Deivi fell short of Regice.

With its plan a success, Regice cast Aurora Veil from its fingers, wrapping itself and Abomasnow anew in the polar lights. Its ally, meanwhile, swiftly recovered from being knocked down. Abomasnow loomed over Deivi from behind, his arm cocked in preparation for Ice Punch.

"Behind you!" Rosalita yelled to her Shiftry. "Dark Pulse!"

On his trainer's direction, Deivi jumped into the air and flipped over in a single fluid motion. Despite being upside down, he was able to shoot a wave of glowing black rings from his hands straight into Abomasnow's face. The Grass-and-Ice-type stumbled and flinched, losing his nerve to attack. Regice tried to retaliate by firing a Signal Beam at Deivi, but with how the Shiftry's body was propelled by the force of his Dark Pulse, it couldn't get a bearing on him.

"Keep going like that, Deivi!" the princess encouraged him. "Channel your attack into X-Scissor!"

Deivi flipped again, this time taking aim squarely at Regice as he crossed his arms. Regice shot two more Signal Beams at him, but both missed and Deivi was able to slash at Regice's body. Though the titan was shielded by Aurora Veil's light, it still groaned erratically when its foe made contact. It recovered its strength right away, though, and blew Deivi away with a vortex of wind and ice it whipped up around itself. On the sidelines, Matt cringed at how badly Regice's Blizzard overran Rosalita's Pokémon, while Sheena frowned and shivered.

The princess herself remained centered, however. She exhaled another puff of vapor, then said to Deivi as he shook off the frost, "I have faith in you, Deivi. If you can continue, I am sure you will do everything you are capable of."

Deivi replied with a grunt of affirmation, but he was cut short when Regice rushed him, gliding over the earth with unexpected speed and buzzing angrily all the while. Another Signal Beam sparked to life in the titan's face, but before it could launch the ray, Rosalita called out, "Low Kick!"

Just before the gleaming light erupted from Regice's dots, Deivi dove underneath it and slid into its right leg, knocking the titan over. It called Abomasnow to attention with a furious, distorted cry, prompting its ally to step in block Deivi from escaping. The two Grass-types ended up face-to-face with each other, their proximity leading to their perception of time slowing down. Abomasnow breathed out a tiny cloud of frozen crystals, then pulled his fist back, more ice encasing the three digits on it.

Acting on instinct, Deivi was able to cross his arms and leap up before Abomasnow swung at him. The change of orientation between the two Pokémon led to Abomasnow only being able to strike Deivi's foot with Ice Punch mere moments before the shining Shiftry slashed at him. Using the momentum given to him by Abomasnow clipping his foot, Deivi somersaulted over his opponent after striking with X-Scissor.

"Watch out!" Rosalita shouted as Deivi landed.

Turning around to see what his trainer was warning him of, Deivi discovered Regice sweeping around its temporarily felled partner and heading straight for him. The titan whipped up a Blizzard as it continued advancing forward, leaving Deivi little room to escape. He only managed to avoid taking a direct hit by reflexively bounding up onto the stones around the battlefield. Regice wouldn't let up and gave chase, levitating up to Deivi's elevated refuge and pursuing him as he raced through the hailstorm. Every few seconds, Regice fired another Signal Beam at him, but he managed to stay ahead of them.

"This really is the toughest one yet," Eleanor mused to the others. The dueling pair had left the humans' sight, but they could still hear the sounds of their clash.

"It is still ritual combat," observed Sheena, "but Regice is fighting particularly viciously. The technique behind its tactics are also quite impressive…"

A snowbank opposite Rosalita exploded when one of Regice's Signal Beams burst through it. Deivi leapt over its remains and landed back in the arena, but as soon as he arrived, Abomasnow ambushed him with an Ice Punch straight to the chest. The blow forced a sickening wheeze from Deivi's lungs, and Abomasnow tossed him upward, putting him squarely in Regice's sights. The titan extended its arms and finally managed to cleanly strike Deivi with its ray of flickering, multicolored light. All the blows the Shiftry had weathered finally caught up with him, and when Signal Beam's explosion threw him at his trainer's feet, he didn't get up.

Rosalita was aware of the worried stares her companions, even Noel and Leon, were regarding her with. Though she understood why they would react that way to what they'd seen, her heart was untroubled by it. She lowered herself to her knees and nestled Deivi's head in her arms. "Deivi…" she gently whispered to him, recalling when she first found him as a child. She'd been playing hide-and-seek with Fernando in Lingote Palace's vineyard, and while it was her turn to find her brother, she encountered a red Seedot feeding from a Nomel Berry tree. She ended up forgetting about her game to pursue Deivi around the garden instead, and Fernando never let her live it down. "We've been through a lot, haven't we?" the princess said to the Shiftry as she gently stroked his hair. "I am proud of your courage, Deivi. Thank you for lending me your strength. I couldn't be where I am today without you."

Rosalita returned Deivi to his Poké Ball, then stood up and brushed the snow from her cloak. She could sense that her destiny was close, a fact that both excited and terrified her. Her conflicting emotions led her to bite her lip.

"Almost there…" she muttered to herself as she tightened her fingers around another Poké Ball. She recalled the events of the previous day, specifically her battle with Registeel, and was able to calm herself down as a plan formed in her mind. "That's right, this should still work. Elena, Fell Stinger!"

The princess's Leavanny burst from her Poké Ball already in mid-dive. She spat several glowing, purple needles at Abomasnow, only for Regice to sail into their path and block them from reaching their target. The needles scattered on the ground while Regice moved away, giving Abomasnow space to take a swing at Elena. She was ready, however, and deftly pulled her head back so Abomasnow's Ice Punch would sail harmlessly over her.

"That is superb, Elena!" Rosalita encouraged her Pokémon. She then crossed her arms and called out, "Now use String Shot and spread it everywhere you can!"

The first place Elena spit her silk was directly into Abomasnow's face, covering his eyes. He roared and blindly swiped at her, his anger making a red aura to erupt from his body. Elena bobbed around his punch and attached a strand of silk to his arm, using its movement to swing away on the thread. Just as she let go of the string and spun forward through the air, Regice planted itself firmly in front of her and raised its arms to start whipping up a Blizzard.

"Leaf Blade!" the princess commanded.

Elena trilled and slashed at Regice using her leafy arms, which had extended into knife-like protrusions. Aurora Veil shielded Regice from suffering any visible injuries and assisted it in remaining upright, allowing it to easily engulf Elena in its gusty winter blast. Her frail body couldn't weather the cold, and she crumpled to the ground crying out in pain.

 _"It won't work the same way it did yesterday…"_ Rosalita realized. Her confidence started to crack, leaving her unable to decide what to do. All her thoughts intrusively focused on one thing. _"I should not have sent Elena into this at all…"_

Off on the sidelines, Matt and the others could see Rosalita's fear and worry pulling her eyes open wide and weakening her posture. He instinctively moved his laptop's camera away from her.

Eleanor cupped her hands around her mouth and called out, "Keep going, Rosa! You're almost there!"

"That… that's right!" Sheena added, initially caught off guard by Eleanor's enthusiasm. "You can move past a mistake!"

"You can move past a mistake…" Rosalita repeated. With each word, a little more of her determination returned. She straightened up, and her look of panic disappeared. "You are correct. Thank you for reminding me of that…"

The princess, having composed herself, recalled her Leavanny to the Poké Ball in her hand. Once this was done, she rolled the sphere over and stared at its button. Flakes of snow landed on its plastic surface and melted just enough to leave visible streaks of water.

"Elena," she addressed the Pokémon inside the sphere, "please forgive me for leading you into the wrong battle. It was my mistake, not yours." Her lip quivered, and her fingers tightened involuntarily around the ball. "When we're done here, I'll heal you. For now, though, all I can do is make sure your effort was not in vain. I shall not let you down." Rosalita reached into her cloak and exchanged Elena's Poké Ball for Adiela's. It was her last, a fact she was very well aware of. Yet, she held no doubt when it came to what would happen. For all her mistakes, and as grueling as the trial had been, she had a reason for saving Adiela until the end. "I shall not let any of you down… nor will I let down anyone else I must fight for. Adiela, come forth and claim victory!"

Two things happened at once when Rosalita's Rapidash erupted from the sphere she threw. The equine Fire-type clacked her hooves on the stone floor and neighed, while up above, the hailstorm tapered off as the clouds broke up.

"If I'm not mistaken," Matt said as he gazed skyward alongside the others, "there's no way Abomasnow will be able to set Snow Warning off again. That means no more Aurora Veil, too."

"I don't really know all the particulars of what you're talkin' about," Leon told him, "but I'm guessin' that's good for Princess, and that means it's probably good for us."

"You aren't wrong," Sheena confirmed, making Leon smile in delight.

Noel remained stone-faced, on the other hand. Her attention stayed fixed on the battle before them, where Abomasnow had finally managed to pull Elena's silk off his face. "Don't get to countin' your Torchic yet, Bro," she warned. "Those eggs are all in one basket and they ain't hatched yet."

Rosalita, too, was aware of what the shift in the weather signified. "This is our best opportunity to make a decisive move," she informed Adiela, who snorted embers from her muzzle in response. "Tackle Abomasnow with Flame Charge!"

Adiela bound straight for Abomasnow, her lithe form wrapped in smoldering flames that flicked outward like those of the sun. The Grass-and-Ice-type didn't move at all in the face of the overwhelming threat the oncoming attack held. He stood perfectly still, watching Adiela as she approached. Before she reached him, his eyes changed color, briefly flashing the same red and white as the Rapidash's.

Rosalita and her companions couldn't react in time to what Abomasnow did, and Adiela didn't see it. She collided with him at full force, but he didn't flinch at all. He held fast to his place, seemingly unaffected by a blow that just moments earlier seemed to pose a severe danger to him. The flames that could have easily brought him down were instead drawn into his body and absorbed, with not so much as a singe on his furry body. Rosalita had no idea what she'd just seen at first. It took her some time to think back on the trial before the answer came to her.

"Role Play!" the princess exclaimed, taking a step forward. "I completely forgot…"

"I don't understand what's goin' on here, not one bit," Noel remarked to the others.

"I think Adiela's ability must be Flash Fire," Matt deduced. "Abomasnow copied it and gained an immunity to Fire-type moves. Very clever…"

Once Abomasnow finished absorbing the flames, the same red aura that he radiated while attacking Elena reappeared. He roared, reared back and smashed both his arms into Adiela, sending her skidding across the ancient arena. At that same time, the rainbow light of Aurora Veil faded from around his body.

Though Regice had disappeared from her line of sight, Rosalita knew it too was no longer protected. Swelling with another burst of confidence, she swept her arm in front of herself and into the air, calling out, "Go for a Megahorn!"

On her trainer's command, Adiela checked her slide by shifting her right rear leg back. She lowered her head and charged at Abomasnow again, her horn glowing and lengthening as she did so. He stomped towards her, still engulfed in the aura of his Outrage, but before the two collided, Regice emerged from behind its partner. The titan already had a number of Ancient Power's stones levitating around it, and it flung them at Adiela. Several of them hit her, but she was so focused that they failed to stop her pace.

Regice slid away as quickly as it had appeared, granting Abomasnow the chance to charge Adiela head-on. He met Megahorn with a powerful punch, and both Pokémon felt the shock of the impact radiate through their bodies. Neither was repelled, however, and they continued to clash. Horn met fist again and again, with Abomasnow showing agility that belied his bulk in keeping up with Adiela's thrusts. No matter how the Rapidash twisted and bucked around him, he was able to match her blow-for-blow.

"See, I told you this one was good," Shaymin boasted to the other Pokémon watching the battle. The Mamoswine grunted to it, and after listening to what the Ice-and-Ground-type had to say, it shook its head. "There's not enough time to tell everything that's going on, you. It's not for you to worry about." Shaymin turned back to the duel between Adiela and Abomasnow. _"Not for you, but for me…"_ it silently added.

Adiela and Abomasnow continued to joust, but Rosalita could perceive that Abomasnow was growing weary. His punches were losing speed and turning more into him just blocking Adiela's jabs with his arms. Not only that, his eyes were glazing over.

 _"That shouldn't surprise me…"_ the princess thought to herself. _"Outrage leaves the one who performs it in a state of confusion…"_

Abomasnow's movements continued to grow slower and clumsier, to the point where Adiela was finally able to start landing clean blows on him. After several more strikes, Abomasnow stumbled, and Adiela seized her opening. She drove her horn straight into the Frost Tree Pokémon's chest, forcing a deep, pained groan out of him. He collapsed onto his stomach and reverted to his original form, his Mega Evolution vanishing in a wave of light.

"That's one down… well done, Adiela!" While Rosalita praised her, Adiela snorted out a bundle of embers and neighed. Their moment of victory was short-lived, however, as Regice re-entered the ring. Beeping and buzzing, it tore more stones from the ground and spun in a circle, flinging them at the Rapidash. Rosalita was ready, and she directed, "Adiela, dodge it and strike with Bounce!"

Drawing on the strength in her powerful legs, Adiela leaped up and into the swarm of rocks. She bounded off the first few, using them as literal stepping stones to propel herself toward Regice. The titan kept spinning and throwing the stones at her, and before she could reach it, one clipped her right flank. She stumbled in midair, leaving herself open to suffer several more blows from the glowing stones.

Rosalita glanced to her side, and saw that Matt, Eleanor, Sheena, Noel and Leon all were staring at Adiela, closely watching the Rapidash's struggle. To encourage her, Rosalita called to her, "You can do it, Adiela! We've been so much together… I know you can make it!"

Hearing her trainer's words of support helped to clear Adiela's head. She shook off her daze and vaulted from the stone she was on, just managing to avoid several more flying her way. Once she finally got above Regice, she somersaulted and plummeted toward it, driving all four of her hooves down into its body. A shockwave radiated through the titan's body, making it shudder and emit an electronic groan. Adiela shoved herself off Regice, but when it tried to give chase, it found itself unable to move.

"Bounce paralyzed it!" Matt shouted to Rosalita. "This is it! Now's your chance to finish this fight!"

"Much obliged," replied the princess. She turned back to the battle, held her fist to her chest, and said, "That is correct, Adiela! Victory is in our grasp! First, use Flame Charge to build up speed!"

Regice, unable to move, could do nothing but watch as Adiela charged towards it with her body aflame. It screeched and slid back when she collided with it. While she ran back to her trainer, Regice tried to mount a counterattack but failed to rouse its body beyond raising its arms.

"This… this is really it, Adiela." Rosalita's voice was growing quiet as the meaning of the moment started to fully dawn on her. "We're going to win against the last of the Three Pillars… please, put an end to this. Wild Charge!"

Adiela struck her foot against the ground to dispel the remaining flares from Flame Charge. They were promptly replaced by a veil of crackling electricity, and the Rapidash barreled at its target once again. From her vantage point, Rosalita thought she saw Regice go still, as if it was ceding the fight to her. She couldn't be sure, but the idea that even Regice respected her strength gave her some comfort.

After Adiela tackled Regice and caused her electrical energy to explode outward, she backed up but did not go far from her opponent. Sure enough, after one last robotic groan, the titan fell forward and crashed into the ground. By sheer coincidence, a soft, gentle snowfall started at the exact same time. It was as if the weather itself was watching and understood what had taken place.

"We did it…" Rosalita whispered to herself. For a moment, she felt nothing. Her mind disconnected from her body, giving her the sensation of watching herself from outside. And then, all at once, every emotion hit her. Joy that her long-awaited destiny had come. Worry over whether she'd do the right thing for her kingdom. Nervousness over the immense responsibilities she faced. All-consuming fear regarding her brother and his plans. Rosalita couldn't handle everything that was piling on her at the same time. She crumpled to her knees and started sobbing. That was the only thing she had the ability to do. "It's finally over… we did it, we did it…"

A sudden warm touch briefly choked off her tears, and she looked up to see Adiela gently nuzzling her. She started crying again as she hugged her friend, but these tears carried hints of joy.

"Thank you, Adiela, thank you so much…" She glanced under her cloak and saw her other Poké Balls. "I thank you all as well… all of you, I couldn't have done it without you."

"I'm proud of you, Rosalita," Sheena said as she approached with the others. She gave Rosalita a warm smile. "You've worked hard to get here."

"Sheena is right, you!" Shaymin boisterously declared, flying into the circle. The Pokémon it was with remained on the cliff. "Your efforts have been quite admirable. Yes, quite admirable indeed. You truly are worthy of taking the throne."

"That means so much to me…" Rosalita cries subsided, her tears coming slower and smaller as she looked up still sniffling quietly. "I don't know if I'm ready for what comes next…"

"That's why we're by your side." Matt had given his laptop to Eleanor, and he extended a gloved hand to Rosalita. The light of the puzzle box was spilling from his bag. "Please, stand up. This is your rite of passage, so you should be the one to do this."

The princess blinked several times, ridding her eyes of the tears that remained. "You are correct," she said, regaining her focus. She took Matt's hand and rose back up. Both of them then turned to Regice, who hadn't moved after falling over. It was radiating golden light, just like Regirock and Registeel had after their defeats. Matt retrieved the puzzle box from his bag, and he and Rosalita lifted it into the air, each of them sharing one side of it.

 _"A body of ice,"_ the voice, distinctly male yet gentle and suave, sounded in their heads. While it spoke, Regice dissolved into light and merged with the cube. _"To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

"Who's that talkin' now?!" Noel exclaimed, pushing Leon behind herself while frantically searching around.

"It's the voice of Regice," Eleanor told the siblings. "Don't feel bad, it freaked Matt out pretty bad when it first happened to him, too."

Matt shot a look back over his shoulder at Eleanor, and she replied by sticking her tongue out and winking at him. He thought about saying something, but a sudden spike in the intensity of the puzzle box's glow distracted all of them. It levitated from Matt and Rosalita's hands and floated in the air before the group, spilling light from all of its sides.

"Here we go," Rosalita breathlessly said.

As much as the question of what the cube's completion tantalized the princess, it was Matt who couldn't wait to find out. _"My grandfather laid down his life to protect this thing,"_ he thought, staring at the gleaming relic. _"Now that it's complete, what's going to happen…?"_

The puzzle box released a burst of energy, forcing Matt, Rosalita and the others to shield their faces as the wave blew against them. It then slowly descended, landing softly on the snow-dusted earth. The group convened around it as its light faded. For all the different ideas each of them had regarding what would happen next - Matt and Rosalita anticipated seeing an actual map, Eleanor hoped that whatever was inside would come out through an elaborate mechanism - what ended up happening was something none of them guessed.

The top of the cube lit back up and projected not a map but a simple message written in Braille. Matt waited for a moment, thinking as the others did that something else might happen. When nothing did, he focused his sight and began reading.

"Whosoever shall wear the crown, the time of your birthright has come." Behind him, Rosalita tended up and drowned. "Reach the sacred site and accept the gift and the curse of the earth. The place of your fate is the crown on the head of the king. The boundaries of life and death await at the end of the four towers and the Three Pillars."

"The four towers and the Three Pillars?" Sheena repeated. "The Three Pillars are Regirock, Registeel and Regice, that we know. What four towers is it referring to?"

"I am quite certain I know," Rosalita said in a deathly serious voice. "Matt, show me that map we've been using."

"Huh? Oh, right." Matt reclaimed his laptop from Eleanor and tapped several keys, bringing the map back up on its screen. "Here."

"Back when the Doradan kingdom was at its peak," the princess explained, "our land encompassed everything from where La Ciudad Dorada is now to the mountain range across the desert. At that time, we had multiple towers laid out across the realm. Lingote Palace is considered one of them, but there were three others." Rosalita touched the laptop's screen in three places, leaving marks behind. "Here, here and here. The four towers."

Eleanor cocked her head. She had been tracing the path laid out by the towers' locations, but noticed something unusual. "See that? Those three towers are all in a straight line with Lingote Palace. But isn't this all a little weird?"

"What do you mean?" Rosalita asked her.

"These," Eleanor replied, pointing to the marks representing the titans' locations. "Where we found Regirock, Registeel and Regice. As soon as you showed us the towers. Rosa, I couldn't help but think that the whole map looks a bit like Regigigas."

Rosalita stole another glance at the map, brought her hand to her mouth, and gasped. "You are correct, it really is in the image of Regigigas!" she exclaimed, regarding the map with wide eyes. "Lingote Palace and the towers, plus the locations of the trials… this is the face of our guardian. And the clue said we need to go to a place that's the crown on the head of the king. Since this is Regigigas's head and face… the Golden City must be right… there."

The princess placed her finger on a spot at the center of the mountain range. The dots representing Lingote Palace and the three other towers led straight to it, while the locations of the trials completed a circle around the site.

"X marks the spot," Eleanor joked, "or in this case, the circle marks the spot."

"So in a sense, it really was a map…" Matt said to himself. "Not literally, but the key to understand the map to the Golden City…"

Matt's musing was interrupted when Rosalita tugged on his sleeve. "We must be off with haste," she told him, "but first… I need more Revival Herbs. I must heal my friends."

"Of course." Matt started to reach into his bag, but before he grasped the bottles with the herbs inside, he added, "I should let Cassy know where we're going, too."

-:-

It was mere minutes later when Cassy's phone started beeping. The tone interrupted her from the book she was reading, an extensive genealogy of the royal family.

"What happened now?" she muttered to herself in irritation.

Her frustration faded once she saw what was in the email Matt sent her. Besides a modest amount of text, it contained an image of the map with all the different location designations on it. Not only that, the site of the Golden City was circled a few too many times with what resembled yellow marker.

"Never one to be subtle when you want someone to see something, huh?" she said before reading the text out loud. "Cassy, it's me. We figured out where the Golden City is, so we're heading there now. I've marked it on the enclosed map. Be careful. Until Rosalita takes the crown, Fernando may resort to any measure necessary to stop her. This incident will be over soon, but the endgame is the most dangerous time."

As soon as she finished reading, Cassy stood up so quickly she nearly knocked her chair over, then hastily made her way out of the archive.

-:-

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the castle, Fernando was in his personal sitting room, surrounded by the splendor he'd personally chosen to furnish it. Two red velvet couches sat on opposite sides of a glass table with a marble frame. A number of stands made of wood dotted the room's perimeter, each of them supporting a planter. The Gracidea flowers contained within weren't in the best of health, even though Fernando had been careful to take care of them. Why they had proven so resistant to return to health, the royal had no idea.

What had his attention at that time, however, was the giant painting overlooking the room. It depicted himself and Rosalita as children, and had been commissioned by their father as a gift for their fifth birthday. He was standing before the portrait, staring at it while holding the Griseous Orb's staff in his hand.

Lost in thought, he scowled and asked himself under his breath, "Why wouldn't any of you listen to me?"

~:~

Lingote Palace's throne room was easily the most spectacular chamber in the entire castle. Giant stained glass windows depicting lush gardens and magnificent towers overlooked the red carpet path at the center of the hall, which connected the great entryway doors to the raised floor where the king's golden throne sat. More stained glass surrounded said platform, helping to fill the chamber with colorful radiance.

All that color and radiance was a mere facade that day. Fernando, Rosalita and their parents - all four were present, but the mood between them was nothing like the happy family they had been before.

"Father, you must see things the way I do!" pleaded the count. Spreading his arms, he continued, "That message is a direct threat against our sovereignty and way of life!"

Fernando VII tightened his grip on the piece of paper in his hand. It was a letter that had just arrived in the kingdom, promising that an unidentified sender - implying itself to be a group with its language - was coming for La Ciudad Dorada's treasures. He glanced to Sophia, standing at his side, and his queen gave him a short, encouraging nod. He then looked down from his throne to his children standing before him.

"It is undeniable that this is a threat to be taken seriously," Fernando VII told the pair.

"See, you understand!" his son exclaimed. "Luckily, I have prepared a plan to keep La Ciudad Dorada and its way of life safe. We must show these outsiders that attacking us would be a fool's errand. To do so, we should walk the path of the Three Pillars and awaken Regigigas-"

"We will do no such thing," the king interrupted.

In an instant, Fernando's face sank. He thought his father was listening to him, so when he realized his pleas were falling on deaf ears, his mind filled with anger. "But why?! You said we must take the threat seriously! Why are you not doing anything to respond to it and protect our land?"

"Father understands what Regigigas's role is," Rosalita interjected, bringing her brother's rage-filled glare onto herself. "Regigigas is our protector, but not our weapon."

"That is correct, my son," Fernando VII concurred. "We have had many centuries of peace, and we are more than prepared to defend that peace if we must. Regigigas's will is its own. If our defenses are not enough to defeat this threat, Regigigas will recognize the urgency and awaken of its own accord. We must not awaken it for our own purposes."

"You've all gone mad!" the younger Fernando fumed. "The civil war cost us all our territory except for this city itself. That was the last time Regigigas awakened on its own! We must call upon it ourselves and explain why we need it! I implore you, reconsider!"

"This is not up for debate, Fernando." The king shut his eyes. "Awakening Regigigas on our own is not an option. As Rosalita said, it is our protector, not our weapon. It is up to Regigigas to decide when to act."

"I cannot… I cannot believe…" It took every ounce of Fernando's will to not lash out at his father in a way that would surely have earned him a punishment. To restrain himself, he clenched his hands into fists so tightly that he nearly drew blood from his palms. He lowered his head and said in furious anguish, "I spent my life training myself to protect the kingdom, only to be rejected in favor of Rosalita… Now I'm the only one taking any initiative to shield our home from a threat, and this scorn from you all is how I'm rewarded… I have no place here, do I?!"

"Fernando…" Sophia gently replied, her face sinking into a soft, compassionate expression with saddened eyes. "You do have a place here. You always have and always will. Please try to understand that this just is not the right idea for the times we are in. It is not a judgment of your character."

"Mother?! H-how could you?!" Fernando seemed genuinely hurt by what Sophia said. His look of anger flipped to despair nearly instantly, and instead of restraining his fury, he found himself fighting back tears. "That is exactly what you told me that day, when Shaymin selected Rosalita to inherit the throne… how could you say those words to me now?!"

"I did not mean to…"

At that point, nothing his mother could have said would have gotten through to Fernando. He pivoted on his heel and started to march out of the throne room, leaving his parents and sister behind. They couldn't see or hear him mumbling to himself as he left.

"You're all mad… I will defend this kingdom. I will protect it from all its threats, from without… or within." Fernando's eyes went wide as they sank back in his head. "No matter what price I must pay. No matter what…"

~:~

Recalling the relatively recent events only made Fernando grit his teeth, the anger he felt rising within him once again.

"You will understand once I awaken Regigigas and it protects us, Rosalita," he told the image of his sister, using the portrait as a stand-in for her. "I will make sure that it will defend our land."

Fernando's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the heavy wooden door that connected his sitting room to the hallways outside. He turned away from the portrait and took a single step toward the entrance.

"Come in!" he beckoned.

The visitor to his chambers turned out to be one of the guards, who slowly pushed the door open with one hand while clutching his staff with the other. "Count Fernando?"

"Yes, what is it?"

The guard stepped aside, revealing Cassy standing behind him. She glared up at the count with an icy stare, seemingly angry with him for something even he wasn't aware of.

"Miss Natsuka has requested an audience with you," the guard explained.

"Very well," Fernando replied, ushering Cassy forward with a sweeping gesture. She went to one of the velvet couches and sat down, and Fernando followed. Before speaking to her, however, he said to the guard, "Leave us. I wish to speak to her alone."

"As you wish, sir."

The guard bowed his head and exited the room, closing the door behind him. Once they were alone together, Cassy and Fernando sat in uncomfortable silence for what seemed like forever.

"Well?" the count finally asked her.

Cassy sighed and reached into her pocket, retrieving her phone. She tapped its screen to wake it up, then handed it over to Fernando. "That's where the Golden City is," she informed him. "Matt circled it a million times, so you can't really miss it. Don't you hurt him when you go."

"The entirety of La Ciudad Dorada thanks you for your service," Fernando replied, though his expression soon darkened. His natural distrust of outsiders was flaring again, even despite the gift Cassy had just given him. "What do you think you gain by leaking his activity to me?"

"I've given you that information so you wouldn't hurt him while you dealt with your own affairs." Cassy's eyes drifted away from Fernando's face and fixated on the Griseous Orb atop his staff. "I already told you. That's what I want."

 **END of CHAPTER 5**


	7. The End of History

My good friend Ren helped me with the flashback featured early in this chapter. The scene itself was almost entirely her idea, so I cannot thank her enough for it. Also, Bay's character Jacob appears in this chapter, so once again, credit to her.

I also must give a lot of credit to my excellent beta reader, Fobbie. He really did a lot to get this chapter into shape, and always does wonderful work.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 6:** The End of History

-:-

If the ride to Registeel's fortress the day before had been awkward for Matt, Rosalita and the others, their trip to the Golden City proved to be positively _unbearable._ Eleanor drove them to the area indicated by the puzzle box's clue, and when they got there, the cube led them off into the brush with its light.

The weight of everything that had happened so far weighed heavily on their minds, as did the knowledge of what still lay ahead of them. Noel and Leon proved the exception, unaware of the true meaning behind what they were involved in, and were blissfully untouched by the oppressive atmosphere lingering over the rest of the group. The two siblings only knew that they were going to the Golden City, and couldn't stop talking excitedly about it as the group hiked. Sheena entertained them with conversation, as did Eleanor.

Not one word from any of them registered in Rosalita's mind. The princess, walking at the head of the group with Matt as he held the box aloft, had shut them all out. All she could think of was something she remembered from her childhood.

~:~

La Ciudad Dorada was truly an oasis in every sense of the word. Despite being completely surrounded by miles of desert, it had plenty of water and its land overflowed with life thanks to Shaymin's power and the gratitude of the people that fueled it. It didn't frequently rain there, but what they proved to be enough for their little emerald island amid the sands.

But the oasis' idyll was marred by one primary shortcoming. When the rains came to La Ciudad Dorada, they came with the force of a hundred Water Spouts. Such a violent storm was outside the young Rosalita's bedroom window that night, and the sound of the rain pounding the glass terrified her. She tried everything she could to hide from it, drawing the semi-translucent curtain around her bed and just barely peeking out from under her silk sheets.

None of it helped soothe her fears at all. A bolt of lightning flashed near her window, but before she could react, a huge crack of thunder shook the castle. Rosalita couldn't stop herself from screaming at the top of her lungs and diving under the sheets, where she started to cry.

Between her frightened wailing and the continued rhythm of the torrential downpour outside, she could barely hear the door to her room opening a few minutes later.

"Rosalita?" It was Fernando. Her brother tentatively ventured further into her room, focusing his attention like a laser on her bed. Though at first confused, his expression quickly turned into one of concern when her crying sank in. "Rosalita? What's wrong?!"

Shaymin padded into the room around Fernando's feet and called out, "You are okay, yes?"

Rosalita couldn't reply. She just kept sobbing, although she did stick her head out from under her sheets enough for Fernando and Shaymin to see her. The prince and the Pokémon ran to the side of her bed and pulled the curtain open, Shaymin doing its best to help by tugging at the curtain with its mouth. She still didn't stop crying, but when she looked at Fernando, he could see that her eyes were already red.

"What… is… it?!" Shaymin demanded as it pulled itself up onto the bed. Once it conquered the piece of furniture, it let out a tired huff and shook its head. "Tell us what has you so upset, yes?"

Shaymin had no idea how much it had tempted fate, but fate immediately delivered its answer. Another lightning bolt flashed through the window, followed promptly by its accompanying thunderclap. Rosalita dove back under the sheets, though her cries were starting to weaken.

"I see, yes," Shaymin uttered, trying to take on an authoritative tone. "Lightning and thunder is very frightening, yes…"

"You're not helping, Shaymin!" Fernando complained before turning back to his sister. He tried to pull back the sheets, but Rosalita initially fought to hold them in place. Despite this, he persisted, and she soon gave up her resistance.

"Th-The light and noise is scaring me," she whimpered once Fernando got her out in the open.

"But it's outside," Fernando replied, placing his hands on his hips.

"It doesn't matter!" Rosalita threw up her hands and knocked away a Clefairy doll that was on the bed next to her. It nearly hit Fernando on its way to the floor.

Fernando picked up the doll and carefully regarded it. Looking at the plush toy gave him an idea, and he threw it back onto Rosalita's bed before seizing her hand and pulling her out. "Come here! I need to show you something!"

"What?" she sniffed.

"You don't have anything to be afraid of, because…" Fernando let go of his sister's hand and ran to the corner of the room, where Rosalita had piled all of her other dolls. The biggest of them was a huge plush Regigigas, so great in height that it eclipsed the child prince. Fernando pulled it away from the rest of the pile and positioned himself behind it in such a way that he could manipulate its arms while pushing it. He forced his voice from the back of his throat when he spoke again, making it sound deeper. "...because I am Regigigas, the great protector! When my subjects are in danger, I go forth to protect them!"

Fernando started pushing the doll towards the window. He was unable to see Rosalita while he did so, but he did notice that he no longer heard her crying.

"You will stop making Rosalita cry, storm!" he yelled at the glass, keeping his exaggerated voice up. "Stop, or I will come out there and destroy you!" As if the storm was responding to Fernando's challenge, another lightning strike and boom of thunder occurred. The prince noticed that his sister didn't seem to react this time, but still, he kept up the act. "That's it! I warned you, now prepare to face my wrath!"

That 'wrath' amounted to the boy roaring at the storm while waving the plush Regigigas's arms around. It was such a ridiculous spectacle that Rosalita could feel her fear melting away as her muscles unwound. She finally fell to her knees on the red carpet and broke down - broke down laughing. The sight of her brother cartoonishly challenging the elements from the other side of her window was just too much of a delight to ignore.

It was exactly the reaction Fernando was hoping for. He released the doll and ran to embrace his sister. "There we go. Isn't that better?"

"Yes, it is…" she murmured. "Thank you."

"Don't you be scared of that stuff anymore, I'll stay here to keep you safe." Fernando put his hand on Rosalita's head, then teasingly added, "And if I'm not enough, Regigigas can come back."

Rosalita threw her arms around her brother with such force that she nearly knocked him over. "I don't think I need Regigigas if you're around. Thank you…"

Even as the storm produced another clap of thunder outside, the royal siblings descended into shared hysterical laughter. Shaymin watched approvingly from the bed, several flowers having sprouted from its back.

~:~

Thinking back on that night only made Rosalita more upset. Her hands tightened into fists and her teeth clenched behind a sharp frown, though she wasn't consciously aware of either action.

 _"No, Fernando, you're the one who doesn't understand!"_ she thought, finding herself growing angry at her brother. _"Regigigas is not a toy! It's not something we have the right to trifle with! If you cannot see that, then I must protect not only the kingdom, but you from yourself!"_

Rosalita remained lost in her haze of memories and emotions until a sudden shout from Matt popped her bubble. She blinked her way back to reality in time to see that they had reached a clearing, where a gigantic, sheer rock face seemingly stymied them. Easily at least thirty feet tall by Matt's estimation, the wall in the side of the mountain seemed at once an impossible obstacle, and a warning to go no further.

"It's right here!" he told the others. "It has to be!"

"I guess Matt's thing is ancient golden cities like mine is machines," Eleanor joked to Sheena, Noel and Leon.

"Something certainly does have him fired up," Sheena said in agreement.

"What are you all waitin' for?!" Leon demanded of them. "We gotta get there and get Princess to become… uh… Queenie, I guess! Sis and I ain't gettin' what we want without that, did you forget?! How can it be here?"

"You'll see," Matt told Leon. "It actually reminds me of what we found when we were searching for Regirock and Registeel."

"I concur," Rosalita said. Facing Matt with intensity burning in her green eyes, she requested, "Please use the puzzle box to open the way."

"No, you should do it," he replied, surprising the princess by pushing the box into her hands. He then took his laptop out of his bag, and as he opened it he said, "You're the one with a birthright to be here."

"That may be so, but…" Rosalita lowered her head. Did he really see things that way even though it was his adventure too, following in his grandfather's footsteps? "I think, as Sutter Chiaki's heir, you also have a right to visit this place."

"But you are the heir to the throne of this land," he countered, though in a bland tone that betrayed his inner turmoil. "Me? I'm just… an observer of what is to happen."

Rosalita opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. She instead turned away in shame. _"I am so happy that this is nearly over,"_ she thought. _"I cannot avoid telling him for much longer…"_

While Rosalita contemplated her situation, Sheena came up alongside her and touched her shoulder, making her jump. "I'm sorry for sneaking up on you… are you alright?"

"Why… why do you ask?" the princess stuttered, still off-balance from her thoughts being interrupted.

"I cannot say how I would feel knowing I was about to inherit immortality and take the reins of a land my family has led for seven hundred years…" When she saw Rosalita flinch, Sheena hurried to add, "But you're the one who can do it! You've proved it! To be honest, I don't think I could do it."

There was a lot Rosalita wanted to say in response to Sheena's praise, but her escalating worry left her unable to put it all into words. It wasn't just her nervousness over the immense responsibility she would soon be taking on. No, what was really striking fear into her was a sinking feeling about what she and the others _didn't_ know. They had no idea what Fernando had been up to back at the palace. They had no idea about Cassy leaking their location to him. As long as her brother's activity remained an enigma, he posed a danger she couldn't help but dread.

Even though she felt afraid, though, Rosalita knew she had little choice but to keep pressing on. Swallowing her fear, she responded to Sheena's praise with a simple nod and smile, then lifted the puzzle box toward the graying sky.

Almost immediately, the cube erupted with light with the force of a great volcano. The blinding glow flooded the clearing, and as it spilled from its source it began etching intricate images into both the ground and the wall.

"How much more weird stuff is gonna happen today, exactly?!" Noel complained from the back of the group, covering her eyes like all the others. "Ever since Bro and I started followin' you it's been one thing after another!"

Before anyone could answer the hunter's demands, the overflowing light from the box abruptly cut off. The area went back to normal in an instant, save for one significant change: the entrance of a great golden temple had materialized in the mountain while they had been blinded. Both its front and the ground before it were covered in elaborate depictions of Regigigas, Regice, Regirock, Registeel and Shaymin amongst lush forest settings.

"Once again I bring an heir to the throne here," the real Shaymin said to its human companions. It sighed, though it was careful not to let on how doubtful and ashamed it actually felt. _"And another generation I end up misleading…"_ it thought, sadly shaking its head. In order to hide these feelings from the humans, it immediately put on its usual demeanor and told Rosalita, "Go forth, you! March to your destiny!"

A small gasp slipped from Rosalita's lips, but she swiftly composed herself. "Yes, of course." The princess could see that the path into the mountain was quite dark, so she turned to Eleanor and said, "Please have Litwick show us the way."

"You got it, Rosa!" Eleanor replied with a wink. She walked past the others, took Litwick's Poké Ball from her skirt and opened it, allowing the candle Pokémon to materialize on her shoulder. She scratched Litwick's cheek, earning a coo from the Ghost-and-Fire-type, and said to her, "Rosa says we need your light. Are you up for it?"

Litwick chirped happily as the flame on her head grew. Pleased with this, Eleanor made her way through the golden shrine's entrance and into the cave. Rosalita followed closely behind, trailed herself by Shaymin, who was hanging its head as it flew. Matt, Sheena, Noel and Leon brought up the rear, with Sutter's grandson careful to keep his camera running as they drew ever closer to the treasure they sought.

-:-

Rosalita had no way of knowing just how prescient her fears about Fernando really were. He wasn't just on his way to the Golden City, he was going there with the Doradan skyship freshly armed with the weapons he had added to it. Despite being an incredibly complex craft using a great amount of machinery made with Arcane Science, it could be piloted by a single person. The minimal manpower requirements proved invaluable for Fernando's efforts to keep the palace advisors and servants as far away from interfering in his plans as he could.

He sat in the skyship's bridge, moving his right hand over the glass panel on which most of the vessel's controls were projected. There were many levers surrounding the panel and a single handle mounted in the floor in front of the pilot's seat, but Fernando had no need for them unless he had to change altitude, which he had no intention of doing until he returned home. Many of the city's citizens had seen him depart in the ship, so he knew he would have to give them some sort of explanation. No matter, he thought. He could deal with that later on.

"I will protect the kingdom no matter what price I must pay. No matter what price…" he muttered to himself as the ship navigated the darkening skies. Those words soon became like a mantra to him, and he tightened his left hand around the Griseous Orb's staff. "No matter what… no matter what… no matter what…"

Suddenly, a vision of Rosalita burst into Fernando's mind, blocking out the control panel in front of him. He blinked several times before he was able to dispel it. Troubled by the vision, he looked out over the vast landscape below and started breathing heavily.

"Why can't you understand?" he said out loud, his body beginning to tremble. "I was born for one reason, to protect this place… please just let me do it. Don't make me have to give up even more…"

-:-

With every inch the group advanced further down the dark, narrow staircase, the air around them grew thicker and ever more oppressive. It was true that there was little circulation so deep beneath the mountain, of course, but the stagnant atmosphere wasn't the main source of the weight they felt. No, it was the knowledge that all of them - even Noel and Leon - understood that every step brought them closer to the Golden City, and thus closer to the the history that would unfold in these musky tunnels. It was so quiet in the passage that Matt, Rosalita and the others could hear the steady rhythm of water dripping somewhere nearby.

After following the path Litwick illuminated for some time, they reached a point where the stairs stopped and the tunnel opened up into a much bigger chamber. Eleanor hesitatingly advanced into the larger space to see how much light Litwick could fill it with, only to discover that it was too big to get the glow very far at all.

"Well, that's unfortunate," she said with a shrug.

"Don't give up just yet," Matt told her, prompting her to turn around. She saw him give Sheena his laptop, remove his right glove, and dip his fingers into a small bowl in the wall at the end of the tunnel. "Oil," he said, rubbing the substance in the bowl between his fingers. Turning to Eleanor, he beckoned her, "Bring Litwick over and light this so we can see what we're dealing with, would you?"

"You got it." While Matt put his glove back on and reclaimed his laptop, Eleanor made her way back to the bowl. Litwick hopped off her shoulder and plopped next to the reservoir of oil. "Light it up, Litwick," Eleanor told her.

The candle Pokémon responded by chirping happily, then hopped to turn around. She lowered the flame on her head until it touched the oil, igniting the fluid.

Eleanor, with Litwick having jumped back onto her shoulder, joined the others as they watched the results of their action unfold. The flames quickly spread out of the bowl of oil, following canals set into the chamber's walls. Bit by bit, the veil of darkness was lifted, revealing to the awestruck explorers what they had found. They had no idea when they entered, but they had uncovered a temple that dwarfed everything they'd seen to that point in both size and splendor.

Directly ahead of them was a gigantic, vividly colored mural, framed by gold pillars that glistened in the light cast by the dancing flames. It depicted countless people clad in festive clothing, dancing alongside many Pokémon. A lush landscape surrounded them, with bushes, trees and vines sprouting from the rich grass under their feet. What caught the attention of Matt, Rosalita, Eleanor, Sheena, Noel and Leon the most, however, were the images at the mural's center. An old man wearing flowing white robes stood next to an image of Shaymin, his hands raised in reverence to Regigigas. The image of the great titan dwarfed everything else in the mural, with its tremendous arms reaching from one corner of the art to the other. All the group observing the mural could do was fan out as they took it in, humbled by the obvious gratitude it depicted.

"Yo, that's Regigigas, ain't it?" Leon remarked to Rosalita in wonder. "Since you said you beat those other three, that means this really is the place…"

"Princess, who's that old geezer there?" Noel demanded.

"It's the first king…" Rosalita softly replied. She knew plenty about her ancestor and her homeland's history, but seeing such a depiction of them with her own eyes left her stunned. That she knew how tantalizingly close to her destiny she was didn't help matters. All she could do was take a single step forward and cover her mouth with her hand, leaving her voice to slip between her fingers. "We call him Fernando the Great… and those are the ancient Doradan people. This is the paradise Shaymin made our land into, and the paradise Regigigas protects… as that paradise was when it was but a newborn."

Expecting some sort of humorous comment from Shaymin after the princess praised it, both Sheena and Eleanor both pulled their eyes away from the mural's hypnotic imagery. When they looked at the Pokémon, however, both were surprised to see it hanging its head and not reacting to Rosalita's words.

Just then, Sheena took notice of a stone monolith in the corner of her eye. It had been right there in front of them the entire time, but with how vast the mural was, they completely overlooked it. Sheena went to the pillar and, after discovering Braille characters on it, called for the others to join her.

"What is it?" Matt asked her as the rest of the group made their way to join her.

"Look at this," Sheena replied, pointing over her shoulder at the Braille. "Another puzzle."

"So it is…" Rosalita quietly said. "It would appear that the tests have not ended just yet…"

Instinctively understanding what had to be done, Matt moved to the head of the group to examine the message, as he'd repeatedly done before. He couldn't help himself from wishing it would be the last of the puzzles, though he kept those thoughts to himself. _"I want this to be over, but if I got that wish, it would force Rosalita to take up her obligations sooner… I have no right to do that to her."_

Matt's internal conflict led to him freezing with his hand just over the monolith's message. He was seized by indecision, unable to fully commit to opening the path to their fates.

"Is something wrong?" Rosalita piped up. "Are you not able to read it?"

That interjection was all Matt needed to put his doubts down. Rosalita was fully aware of what would likely await beyond the puzzle, so if she wanted to solve it, he had faith that she was ready for it.

After sighing in relief, Matt said to her, "No, it's fine. Let's see…" As was his habit , he ran his finger along the Braille glyphs while he read them aloud. "He who shall wear the crown, here lies your final test. The bounty of gratitude sits before you. Complete thus the depiction of gratitude by opening the lock separating you from your destiny. But beware, for the bounty of gratitude shall only be reaped by the worthy. All others shall face the wrath of Gaia."

"The wrath of Gaia..." Sheena ominously repeated.

"Do you know what it means by that?" Rosalita asked her.

"Only in broad strokes," the priestess confirmed. She made her way to Matt's side and touched the Braille, then looked up at the mural. "Gaia enriches our lives, that much is true. But the teachings of my people warn that if one misuses Gaia, it can reverse and become deadly. The bounty that Gaia normally gives us can become a corrupt force that drains the life from the land instead of empowering it."

"Of course messin' with ancient powers would turn out to involve a curse," Noel said with a shrug. "Even a street urchin like me knows that much."

"There certainly is truth to that," Eleanor concurred, her manner much more serious than normal.

"This curse…" All the color had drained from Rosalita's face after she heard Sheena's explanation. In an instant, the stakes at play had risen exponentially, and she knew it. "If Fernando gets here, he could end up destroying all we have left without even realizing it…" Yet, the fate of La Ciudad Dorada wasn't the only thing on her mind. It was something else, something far more personal, that drove her to pivot around and confront Shaymin. "I am aware that the waters of the Fountain of Life only flow when you prompt them to. What would happen if the wrong person were still able to drink from it?"

When Shaymin failed to answer immediately, Rosalita knew her worst fears were correct. Her posture weakened, but conversely, the determined expression on her face hardened even further. Shaymin saw this, but decided to still answer anyway.

"Sheena has already told you," the mythical Pokémon admitted. "The energy of the land flows through the waters of the Fountain of Life. If it were to be misused, the consequences would be the same as those for any other abuse of that power."

"I thought so." When Rosalita turned to Matt, the steely look in her eyes sent a chill down his spine. "I cannot worry about what will become of me anymore. We must find the way forward."

"I agree." Matt couldn't bring himself to tell her that she didn't need to sacrifice her own well-being. "But what lock does it mean?"

Almost on cue, Eleanor piped up, "You guys, look at this." She pointed in the direction of the wall behind the monolith, prompting the others to search there.

What they found was a second mural set into the lower edge of the first one. Though much smaller than the one that dominated the chamber, it still towered over the humans observing it. It was crafted in a circular shape, and even more unusually, it was divided into three sections that increased in size the further they went from the smaller mural's center.

Matt approached the strange piece of art and carefully pushed on one of its three sections. It shifted slightly under his hand. "I think this is our so-called lock," he told the others, "but what exactly are we looking at here? Clearly, all we need to do is set these wheels in the correct positions to form an image, but…"

Despite Matt trailing off, the rest of the group understood what he was getting at. There were no easily defined shapes to be found, nothing that could provide a starting point for deducing the mural's true nature. The curved lines and dots of varying sizes spread across the wheels defied the best efforts of the entire group to solve the puzzle.

"There ain't anythin' there that makes sense," Noel remarked to her brother. She and Leon had been trying to help, but to no avail. "Might as well just be blank space."

"Space…" Something clicked in Rosalita's head after hearing Noel's offhanded comment. She tilted her head to get a different perspective, and the image's meaning came into focus. "Space, that's it!" the princess exclaimed, hitting her fist into the palm of her other hand. "This is the star map from the planetarium in the museum! I cannot believe I didn't recognize it sooner!"

"Is that so?" Matt cocked his head to look at the puzzle the same way Rosalita did, but the clear answer didn't come to him. "As much as I'm interested in space, I don't know the stars here. I mean, it does look like a star map, but not one I know."

"I shall show you." Rosalita stepped up to the puzzle, then looked back over her shoulder. "Leon, you appear to have some muscle on you. Come here and help Matt and I put this together."

"Sis is the only one I take orders from, Princess."

"C'mon, Bro, not now," Noel said with a sigh. "This ain't the time, not when we got a good thing goin' with Princess. Besides, we might be on a time limit. Who knows when that count could turn up."

"Yeah, you're right…" Leon shrugged his shoulders, then went to stand where Rosalita indicated on the opposite side of the puzzle from Matt, who was busy setting his laptop up on the ground. "What d'you want me to do, Princess?"

"Help me turn each wheel until I tell you to stop."

Together, Matt, Rosalita and Leon set about doing exactly that. They started with the outermost piece, which was also the heaviest. It took an exceptional amount of effort to move that wheel, but the three of them were able to get it done. The middle and centermost pieces were easy by comparison, and before long, they had all three wheels set exactly where Rosalita wanted them, forming a flattened but otherwise identical replica of the planetarium.

Matt, Leon and Rosalita barely had time to take a breath before the room reacted to the completed puzzle. Light erupted from between the wheels, causing Matt and Leon to stumble and fall in their surprise. Rosalita, however, remained composed. She simply stepped back and watched, holding her fist to her chest, as the light fused with the three wheels and traced the star map. Once it was fully drawn out, the entire puzzle started to slide into the wall, causing a mighty rumble that shook the entire chamber.

"Amazing…" Eleanor beamed. She had her hands clasped in front of her and a look of sheer delight on her face. "The technology here is nothing short of _amazing!_ "

Waiting behind the puzzle was another tunnel, a little less narrow than the first but still nowhere near the size of the mural chamber. Upon its reveal, the torches lining the passage lit on their own, illuminating the path leading even deeper under the mountain.

"This is it!" Noel exclaimed. "Our ticket outta this life is right in front of us, Bro!"

Leon nodded in acknowledgment to his sister. Neither of the siblings could contain themselves at the thought of finally escaping their difficult lives, and they started to dash toward the tunnel.

"Halt!" Rosalita boomed. There was such authority and force in her voice that Noel and Leon instantly obeyed.

 _"That ain't the voice of the weak little girl that count said she'd be…"_ Noel thought, a chill running through her body. _"Glad we picked the winning side in the end here…"_

"I will be going first," the princess declared. She made her way to the threshold before turning and saying, "Matt, I want you at my side to document this."

"Oh, right…got it."

With Matt right behind her recording everything with his laptop, Rosalita led the others into the tunnel. They knew quite well what was coming from the way the last Braille message called the planetarium puzzle the final test. Awaiting them at the end of the path was what Sutter, Fernando VII and Sophia had all given their lives to protect.

The way two families had been torn apart by the Golden City and its secrets wasn't lost on the rightful heir to them. Rosalita's mind was elsewhere as she stiffly trekked down the tunnel. _"So much blood has been shed,"_ she bitterly thought, _"and to what end? All because he can't understand that he is still important… When this is done, I am sure he'll see the truth then. He must…"_

Shaymin couldn't see Rosalita's face as it floated along behind her, but her body language gave it a good idea of how she felt. The mythical Pokémon, overwhelmed with shame, tried to find something to say to her, only for Matt to break the silence first.

"So you said back there you're interested in space?" he asked the princess. "I mean, that was the impression I got."

Rosalita sighed, internally thankful he'd given her something more positive to think about. Her posture loosened as she replied, "That is correct. Ever since I was a child, it has fascinated me. Since La Ciudad Dorada is so remote, there is nothing to muddle the light of the stars above… and space is so vast that I often wonder if there is another being living a life like mine out there."

"Never took you for someone who'd be interested in _aliens._ " Eleanor had gotten directly behind Rosalita and Matt at some point before she popped into their conversation.

"I never thought of them as aliens," Rosalita said. "To me, anything that's out there is just another being on another planet with its own life and its own story. If you think about it, to them _we_ would be the aliens, the strangers living in the far unknown."

"I guess I'd never thought of it that way. That's a fair point there, Rosa."

"I've always had a dream of going into space myself," Matt admitted to them. "Rosalita, you're right about how beautiful the stars are. I'd love to get to be among them, even for a brief moment… but that's not something that's realistic for someone like me."

"Aw, don't give up on your dreams like that," Eleanor said, giving Matt a playful smack on the shoulder. "Who knows how the chips might fall? I've thought that if I can't make it to Avignon Town or the Azoth Kingdom, maybe I'd go get work at Mossdeep Space Center. I could make the ship that you go into space on."

"I appreciate the thought…" Matt instinctively went to adjust his glasses, only to brush his hands against the bandages on his face. Even though his glove, he cringed at the sensation. "Mossdeep Space Center is a big part of why I have that dream, to be honest. Amanda and I went on a school trip there years ago, right after the Delta-2 mission came home. Everything I saw there blew me away."

"Sounds like quite the experience." Eleanor crossed her arms behind her back. "We've got a lot of sights to see in Kalos, but they're all of _this_ world. I've taken the tour of Lysandre Labs so many times now that the guides all know my name."

"Now, Kalos, that's a place I've never been to," Matt replied, "even with all the trips Sutter took me on. I'd like to get there one day."

"You'd love it," Eleanor assured him.

The pair's conversation wound down just as the group reached what appeared to be the end of the passage. Like the tunnel that came before, it opened into a vast space that the lights they'd been following couldn't illuminate. Yet, as soon as they entered the cavern and fanned out, they all recognized that the chamber they stood in was unlike any place they'd previously visited. A tremendous, overwhelming presence hung in the air, its source concealed by seemingly infinite murk all around them. The sole thing any of the explorers could see lay in front of themselves - something in the darkness was glistening in what little light escaped from the tunnel.

"That must be…" Sheena trailed off, the presence in the underground chamber combining with the stale air to leave her feeling suffocated. She looked down, and gasped in surprise at what she saw. There, under her feet, was yet another vivid mural. This one depicted Regigigas with its arms spread out to their full length. "Look at that, you guys!" she exclaimed, drawing the others' attention to it.

"Regigigas…" Rosalita said the moment the legendary Pokémon's image entered her sight. When she inspected the rest of the artwork, she noticed that the other titans were present in it as well. Regirock and Regice sat at opposite ends, touching Regigigas's fingers, while Registeel was positioned near its master's head. The darkness partially obscured the trio, but enough of them remained visible for them to be recognized. "Regirock, Registeel and Regice as well…" Rosalita took a deep breath, attempting to calm her growing anxiety. "There is only one place we can possibly be."

It appeared that the group's progress was checked by the barrier of darkness they faced, prompting them to search for a way forward. Eleanor soon found another bowl of oil set into the wall, much like the first. It was right at the end of the passage they'd just left, so the torches threw light on it.

Taking Litwick in her hands, Eleanor said to her Pokémon, "This might be the last time we get to do this. You ready to light it up?"

Litwick responded with a happy yet determined chirp, so Eleanor placed her down on the edge of the bowl. She tensed up, infusing all the energy she could into her flame, then leaned forward so it could touch the oil.

When the liquid ignited, the fire quickly left the bowl and followed a winding path of aqueducts filled with more oil. Every inch the fire traveled further lifted the dark veil, revealing to the increasingly awestruck explorers exactly what occupied the spacious cavern.

What spread out before them was a vast complex of interconnected temples and shrines, all forged in gold. Actual, solid gold. Matt couldn't imagine where the ancient Doradans who built it found so much of the precious metal, but there was no mistaking what the structures were made of. While it wasn't literally a city where people could have lived, that didn't really matter. Rosalita and Shaymin already knew about it, obviously, but for the others any remaining traces of doubt they harbored melted away. Here, buried in the deepest bowels of the earth below La Ciudad Dorada, truly was a city of gold. One as real and tangible as the stone under their feet.

The tunnel had led the group to a balcony with an altar overlooking the Golden City, as it turned out. It afforded them a perfect view of the legendary site as the flames continued to illuminate the area. Eleanor, Sheena, Noel and Leon couldn't help but run to the railing at the platform's edge, each of them thrilled for a different reason.

In Eleanor's case, it was nothing more than excitement for how much her visit to La Ciudad Dorada had given her. She'd traveled there just to see the kingdom's machines, yet when she got swept up in the search for the Golden City, she ended up finding a sense of friendship that largely eluded her in Kalos. That, in turn, had made her feel like she belonged there, bringing her peace and satisfaction she had long sought. Basking in the glow of the flames against the gold, she closed her eyes and whispered to herself, "It feels so warm…"

As for Sheena, the Golden City represented an opportunity to learn. The wanderer, the allegedly immortal Tenganist warrior priest from Ransei, was responsible for La Ciudad Dorada becoming an oasis. In that sense, Sheena thought, the Golden City and its Fountain of Life could be considered his greatest achievements. _"It's thanks to him teaching the Doradans how to use Gaia that all this is possible,",_ she marvelled internally as the gleaming glow of the Golden City reflected in her blue eyes. _"Being here is my greatest chance to walk his path and understand what he truly could do."_

As for Noel and Leon, what the Golden City meant to them was already well known. They hadn't exactly tried to hide their motives from the others, after all. When they traveled to the realm at Fernando's behest, they expected to be arriving at the Golden City after capturing Shaymin for him. They'd considered stealing the treasure for themselves, too, but seeing how vast it truly was left them pleased they hadn't pursued that end. It didn't matter. All they wanted was a chance to escape the desperate lives they led, and helping Rosalita was what would get them there.

"Hey, Sis?" Leon said to his sibling and partner. "I just remembered… if we're stayin' here, what about our crew back home in Pyrite? Weren't we gonna help 'em too?"

"I already thought 'bout that," Noel answered with a hearty slap to her brother's back. "They're pretty tough, 'specially that Renzo, but I'll talk to Princess 'bout arrangin' something for 'em."

"Sounds good to me, Sis."

As the furthest reaches of the Golden City were illuminated, one thing brought those on the observation platform together above all else. Gratitude, be it for friendship, knowledge or opportunity, filled their hearts. Though unspoken, all four also shared a sense that they couldn't have achieved their goals without each other. Their silent gratitude was such that it even brightened Shaymin's dour mood for the time being.

At that point, the very back of the cavern was finally brought into the light, and the source of the overwhelming presence in the Golden City was revealed at last. There, sitting on a gargantuan golden throne, was Regigigas. It was easily the most gigantic thing any of the group had ever seen; the temples surrounding the titan were like mere toys compared to its awe-inspiring size. Despite there being a wide path laid out before it, Regigigas could have easily destroyed the entire Golden City if it so desired. That much became immediately obvious to those present. All they could do was stare at the great Pokémon as it radiated power even while remaining perfectly still.

"Good thing it's asleep…" Eleanor breathlessly said.

"Yes, you are correct…" Rosalita took a step forward and unconsciously clenched her hand around the pin on her cloak bearing her family's coat of arms. Shaymin remained floating by her side, and noticed how her hand was trembling. "We must be cautious but prompt," the princess continued, fighting back her anxiety. "I think we can all see quite clearly _why_ Regigigas must not be awakened, most particularly by my brother. Sightseeing can wait until after we head to the Fountain of Life. Come, Matt, we must go…"

When she turned around, Rosalita saw Matt clutching his laptop and staring at its screen. He was slouching, his breathing had turned shallow, and his face was completely blank. Any effect the spectacle of the Golden City had on him had seemingly worn off.

"Matt?" she quietly inquired, taking a tentative step toward him. "What is wrong?"

"We're standing exactly where Sutter stood so many decades ago," he murmured in reply. A sigh found its way through his clenched teeth before he turned his gaze up from the screen. "When Cassy and I came to La Ciudad Dorada, I thought that walking the same path he did would help bring me closure over his death. Now, I'm here, and…" Matt sighed again, finding himself afraid to admit what he was thinking. "I'm here, and… I don't feel anything. Please don't get me wrong, Rosalita, this is a magnificent place… I just…" His composure was beginning to unravel. "I just… I thought that once this was over, I could finally put what happened behind me. I thought I would finally understand why he died, and I don't…"

"Please, do not give up hope," Rosalita told him. She spoke before she could think, and when her mind caught up with her, her sense of guilt flared anew. _"This is my fault,"_ she thought, forcing herself to not frown and give away her feelings. _"If I just told him everything, he could be at peace…"_

"Rosa?"

Eleanor's voice snapped the princess back to reality. The others had closed ranks around her while she was distracted to await her decision on what to do next.

"Yes, yes, Eleanor, I apologize," she said, raising her hand and smiling nervously. She then turned to Matt and vowed, "You will find what you seek, that I can promise you. There is only a little… a little further to go."

"You're right," he answered, straightening himself. "Thank you."

"Rosalita, look over there." Sheena pointed off to the left side of the balcony, drawing the others' attention to a stone staircase leading further down. "That looks like the only way to proceed."

"An apt observation," Rosalita agreed. "Come. Once we are done here, I'll…" One last pang of fear rose in Rosalita's heart, but she fought it back. "I'll be able to tell you everything, Matt."

"Or maybe he can find out now."

Before any of the group could process the sudden intrusion, a bolt of dark lightning cracked the air and struck in their midst. The resulting explosion threw them all back, scattering them across the floor of the viewing deck. Behind them, standing in the gateway to the Golden City, was Fernando.

"You!" Matt yelled at him. Overcome with fury, Matt seized his laptop and tried to stand up, but found himself unable to. It was as if an invisible force was holding him back. He looked around, noticing that the others appeared to be similarly afflicted. "What did you do?!" he demanded.

Fernando held the staff out so Matt could see the Griseous Orb atop it. The jewel was glowing and giving off sparks of dark electricity. "So it really does alter gravity," the count noted as he closed the staff's bulb around the orb.

"You know you are not supposed to be using that!" Shaymin shrieked at him. "Surrender it at once, you!"

"Silence!" Fernando countered, unconcerned by Shaymin's order. He entered the cavern with slow, deliberate steps, and Heatran lumbered in behind him. "You, who refuses to defend this land, has no right to give me commands."

"Oh, like you're doing any better?" Eleanor spat.

Fernando's eyes briefly flicked over to the engineer, but he otherwise paid her no mind. The sight of the Golden City and Regigigas fascinated him. There, laid out before him, was everything he'd hoped for and dreamed of his entire life, given physical form. "It truly is as spectacular as the writings of our ancestors say…" he uttered, awestruck. "This must be protected from the outsiders who would take it away…"

"You're the one who's threatening it!" Rosalita scolded her brother. The effect of the Griseous Orb had worn off enough that she could sit up and throw out an accusing finger at her sibling. "Why can you not understand Regigigas is not a toy or a weapon?! You're the one being a child, Fernando! And while you go on about protecting this place, you're the one who sent outsiders to do all your dirty work!"

That remark got Fernando to halt his advance. He stood right in front of his sister, looked down on her with an icy glare and said severely, "That is rich coming from you. I used them to find the Golden City, that is correct. But I only used them to do what I could not, and that includes getting our rightful property back. Or do I need to remind you that, _you_ took the grandson of the outsider who started all this and relied on him when you didn't even need to?"

"Am I supposed to be chastened by that?" Rosalita snapped. "You killed Mother and Father! Professor Chiaki too! You're in no position to moralize to others when you've already gone too far!"

"That right there is why you are not worthy of the throne despite your power," Fernando coldly replied. His voice was growing shaky, and the hand he held the staff in was trembling. "I… I did kill them. I am weak, and I did what I was capable of. What you fail to grasp is that... nobody is more precious than what we must protect. We are insignificant in the bigger picture of things, and that is why the kingdom must be protected no matter the cost. My life has made that very clear to me."

"You're absolutely mad," Matt angrily interrupted, clutching his laptop and still documenting things, "but does _somebody_ want to tell me what's going on here? My grandfather started this?"

"You didn't even tell him," Fernando scorned Rosalita as he turned away from her. "You lecture me while you manipulate people yourself."

"It's not like you told him either…" she listlessly countered.

"Told me _what_?!" Matt's anger was devolving into utter desperation, and both his tone and movements reflected it. His gaze darted from Shaymin to Rosalita to Fernando and back again before he begged, "What really happened here?!"

"What happened was your grandfather defiled the trial all kings must face," Fernando revealed, "just as you are now. He, an outsider, made himself a part of _our_ sacred custom. To that end, he stole one of our treasures, the golden puzzle box."

"You're not telling him the truth either!" Rosalita lashed out. When she saw Matt look to her in clear bewilderment, the last of her hesitation to tell him fell away. "I didn't know how to tell you this, Matt, and for that I apologize. If you don't wish to forgive me, I will not hold it against you. The truth is… our grandfather, King Fernando VI… he appointed Professor Chiaki as a guardian of the trials and the Golden City."

~:~

Many decades earlier, Sutter had indeed seen the same sight Matt would see in the future. Time seemed to have no influence there. The balcony and altar, the gleaming golden temples, Regigigas and its throne, all of it was identical to how it was in the present.

That, of course, did not apply to Sutter himself. His appearance then was much more robust, with vivid blue hair that matched Amanda's and a neatly trimmed beard. He stood at the edge of the balcony with his apprentice, a young man with a thick, black handlebar moustache, at his side.

"I can't believe it," the elder Chiaki marvelled at the sight before them. "The Golden City is actually real, and we found it… this is our greatest achievement, Jacob."

"No doubt about it, Professor," Jacob replied. "Not just the Golden City, either… if the city itself is real, then the fountain of eternal life must be real as well. Our names will go down in history for this!"

"It is all real, but you presume much to think you will gain fame from this place. If you value your life, you will tell no one outside what you have found."

Sutter and Jacob turned away from the Golden City to see King Fernando VI approaching them, holding Shaymin in his arms. A man of great height, Fernando VI bore a striking facial resemblance to his future grandson.

"Your highness," Sutter addressed the king, "forgive my insolence, but I fail to understand. You have helped us on our journey to this point. Why would you do that if you did not want us to document our findings?"

"We helped you because we have a much greater purpose in mind for you, yes," Shaymin informed the pair.

"That is correct," Fernando VI continued when the two adventurers looked questioningly at him. "Recently, I became aware of some…" The king turned his eyes down to Shaymin, who squirmed nervously in his arms. "...information. Because of it, in my capacity as king, I have decided that I wish to appoint someone outside our realm to watch over this process."

Sutter straightened up, understanding immediately what Fernando VI was suggesting. "What would such a mission entail?" he asked.

"Guarding this," Fernando VI said, producing the puzzle box from his robes after setting Shaymin down. He'd allowed Sutter and Jacob to use it to find the Three Pillars, and they had just returned it to him after solving the planetarium puzzle. "Everything you've heard about this land is true. I allowed you to find the Golden City to see if you were worthy of drinking from the Fountain of Life and using its gifts to watch over the cube until it is once again needed."

"You want us to live forever?" Jacob questioned, completely stunned by what he was hearing.

"Not exactly," Fernando and Rosalita's grandfather replied. "I believe you two have proven that you will use the gift the Fountain of Life gives responsibly, and not abuse it to attain true immortality."

"I see," Sutter said, scratching his chin in thought. "It is true that I've gained deep gratitude for your kingdom's way of life… if fulfilling your request is how I can give back to you, I will do it."

"You're always so brave, Professor…" Jacob remarked. "I don't have the same courage… I'm sorry, your highness, but I don't think I can do it. I just… don't think I can give up my ordinary life for such immense responsibility. I'm not saying I'm not grateful for the honor, but…"

"You need not apologize, Jacob," the king assured him. "I understand I am placing a great demand upon you both. It is not unreasonable to refuse. At the same time, I must insist that you not reveal what has taken place here to the outside world."

"I swear I won't!" Jacob exclaimed, placing his hand over his heart.

"Very well. Come, Professor Chiaki, we must carry out the ceremony at the Fountain of Life."

"This way, yes!" Shaymin called from near the stairs. "Hurry!"

~:~

"That's it…" Matt gasped. His mind was totally overwhelmed by the reality of the situation, and he had started to shut down. He dropped his laptop to the ground as he sat and held the sides of his head. "That must be what Sutter wanted Amanda and I to inherit, his role as overseer… is that why he had to die?"

"No outsider has the right to drink from the Fountain of Life," Fernando declared, devoid of empathy for Matt's situation. He wasn't incapable of caring, but he truly could not understand why Matt was in such distress. "It was a mistake that needed to be corrected. And with no ability to do anything else, I… I corrected it. I hoped to recover the puzzle box at that time as well, but the academy's guards interfered and I had to flee."

 _"No, that can't…"_ Matt's face fell as his hope and drive abandoned him. _"That's it, that's what took the only one who cared about us away? And if we had inherited his duty as he wanted… it would have been us instead… but why was he even given that responsibility? What called for it…?"_

Seeing Matt falling into complete despair spurred Rosalita into action. She forced herself to her feet, pushing through the last of the Griseous Orb's effect. The others were inspired to rise as well, but Rosalita didn't notice them. She jabbed her finger squarely at her brother and thundered at him, "You are wrong, Fernando! All of this is wrong! You don't have the right to deem someone worthy of receiving the Fountain of Life's gifts or not! Only Shaymin and Grandfather did, and they chose Sutter of their own free will!"

"Grandfather was nothing but a traitor!" Fernando roared back, jerking himself around so violently his hair lashed about. "He poisoned Shaymin's mind. That's the only reason it ever would go along with his ideas, whatever the cause was for them! Father knew, too, and he wouldn't do anything to protect us now! That's why I had to do what I did!"

"And I know, too, as all the heirs to the throne do," Rosalita countered. "Would you call me a traitor as well, Fernando? Would you take my life too?"

This truly took Fernando by surprise, and for the first time, he genuinely seemed to be at a loss for words. "I… I…" he sputtered. "Do you think this has been easy for me?!" he finally yelled, not providing an answer to his sister's question. "Father and Mother's faces, their voices as I struck them down… they haunt me endlessly! Do you remember what you said that day, when Shaymin named you heir? You told me I had to understand the sacrifice necessary to be a wise leader. Do you remember that? Do you?!"

"Of course, but that's not-"

"And now I've learned the kind of price I must pay to save the kingdom!" he fumed. "That you would say such a thing, knowing everything we've been through… No!" Fernando shook his head back and forth. "Don't make me lose any more than I already have, Rosalita. I've paid enough of a price. Because of that, I can't stop… I must awaken Regigigas and protect the kingdom." Extending his hand to Rosalita, he pleaded, "Please, you can end this right now. Give up your claim to the throne. Once you do, Shaymin will have no choice but to give me the power of the Fountain of Life."

"You still demonstrate little understanding of the meaning of gratitude, you," Shaymin gravely warned. "Without that, you will only face the wrath of Gaia."

"Silence," Fernando spat. "I don't want to hear anything from you right now."

"Well, I do not know what answer you think you're going to receive." Rosalita met Fernando's gesture with one of her own, extending _her_ hand to _him_. "It is not too late, Fernando. There's still time. If you're willing to put an end to your campaign, I can use my power to grant you clemency. I hate what you have done… but no matter what, I cannot hate _you_. Come home with me and you don't have to lose everything."

 _"Even now, you forgive him…"_ Sheena thought. _"I must admire that."_

Even in the face of Rosalita's forgiveness, Fernando was unmoved. "That is truly why you aren't worthy," he said, stepping back and shaking his head. "You will never understand the price that must be paid to protect the kingdom."

"How can you say that, though?" Tears were welling up in Rosalita's eyes, but they were not spurred on by sadness. She was simultaneously so angry and so distressed by the situation that her roiling emotions forced the tears out. "We promised each other we'd be the best leaders the kingdom ever had, that we'd never fight like the previous siblings did. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

Rosalita didn't see Shaymin visibly cringe at her mention of the siblings. Fernando did, but he ignored it, unaware of its meaning.

"Nothing but the words of silly, foolish children," the count dismissed, drawing a horrified gasp from his sister. "I realize the reality of life now… No matter what I did, how hard I worked, Father and Mother told me it wasn't necessary. They, and the land I love, turned their backs on me. That led me to finally realize something. I was born to protect the kingdom… there is no other purpose for me to be on this earth. I am nothing but a tool for La Ciudad Dorada's survival."

"You're not…" Rosalita knew she would regret saying what was on the tip of her tongue, but at that point, she could no longer hold it back. The sad, broken figure self-destructing before her was nothing like the Fernando she knew. What was perhaps her worst fear was coming true, and she could do nothing but lash out at it. "My brother is a good person, maybe a little vain, but a good person. He would never say that our family had no place for him or sacrifice his humanity for _anything!_ I can't understand how you could become this way… I can't even recognize who you are anymore!"

"... If you loathe me to your dying breath, that is merely another sacrifice I will have to make," Fernando bitterly admitted. Turning to his sister's allies, he said, "I tire of this endless talking. Matt, give me the box so I can awaken Regigigas. Wipe away the stain your treasonous grandfather put on your family name by returning what he stole."

Seeing Matt shrink even further at Fernando's demand, and with Eleanor and Sheena doing nothing, Noel decided to intervene. "Yo, Count. Real low blow on that dude, y'know?" She put her fist against her hip and flashed her trademark scowl. "Ain't it bad enough you killed his grandpa? You don't gotta rub it in like that."

Fernando smirked. He knew exactly what reaction he wanted to provoke, and chose his next words very deliberately. "By what right do you to speak to me, the protector of La Ciudad Dorada, in such a way? You and what army?"

As soon as Noel heard this, she threw back her head and laughed. "Really, dude? The army _you_ gave us! Let's go, Bro!"

Leon followed his sister's direction, throwing all of his clockwork Poké Balls right after she threw hers. Neither of them realized they had walked right into Fernando's trap. The count grinned even more widely as the squadron of collared Pokémon materialized before him and aggressively cried at him.

"That's what you are going to do?" Fernando taunted the siblings. Spreading his arms, he beckoned them, "Then bring it on."

"Hah!" Leon exclaimed. "You must have more than a few screws loose in that head of yours, man. Sis, waste this fool!"

"Gladly!"

An undeniable sense of dread crept up Sheena's body while she watched Noel issue orders to the Pokémon. She absentmindedly brought her hand to her mouth and bit her finger, thinking to herself, _"Something's not right here. I know he has Heatran, but…"_

"Go get 'im!" Noel shouted. "Lickilicky, Water Pulse! Roserade, Shadow Ball! Togekiss, Aura Sph-"

At that point, Fernando switched the hand he was holding the staff with, moving it to the right hand from his left. It wasn't until then that Sheena spotted the gauntlet on his left arm. When he started to raise it into the air, the realization of what he was doing hit the priestess like a ton of bricks.

"Noel, stop your attack!" she warned. "It's a trap!"

"What d'you mean, Eyebrows?"

Sheena couldn't answer before Fernando had his arm fully extended above his head. He dramatically snapped his fist shut, causing a red wave to erupt from the gem on the back of the gauntlet. As soon as the light washed over them, their collars flashed in response, and the Pokémon froze where they stood, standing with every muscle stilled to the point where their very breaths were almost imperceptible.

"What're you all doin'?" Noel demanded of her Pokémon. Flustered, she pointed at Fernando and again ordered, "Go and get him!"

"How very, very sad," Fernando mocked her. "Did you really think I'd give the two of you weapons you could turn against me?"

"What?" Leon gasped. "Sis, if he's not bluffin', he's saying those Pokémon…"

"We still got the controller!" Noel's panic was clouding her judgment. She tried frantically to manipulate her bracelet's projection, to no avail. The device suddenly sparked and died, promptly followed by their entire supply of clockwork Poké Balls doing the same. The siblings could only watch in horror as the tools they'd relied on were torn away from them, the spheres falling off their jackets as they ceased to function.

Smirking, Fernando pointed his fist at his sister and her allies, leading the army of Pokémon to follow his signal. As they slowly turned to face the count's enemies, all emotion and vitality drained from their faces and their eyes filled with a red glow, the listing Pokémon taking on vaguely undead appearances.

"Impressive, no? Those Poké Balls, the collars and their controllers are the fruits of the wisdom of Arcane Scientists in bygone eras. Developed for our military for crises that outstripped the simple bond between Pokémon and trainer," Fernando explained. "It was meant to help give us a defense unit with perfect cohesion as a team. I am using it for its intended purpose, defending the kingdom. Now, Matt Chiaki… give me what your grandfather stole."

"Fine…" Matt sighed in what seemed like surrender. He reached into his bag and said, "It was La Ciudad Dorada's, you're not wrong about that."

"Don't give it to him!" Rosalita implored Matt. "Everything we worked for will be lost!"

Suddenly, Matt looked up and grinned. "Who said I was giving it to _him_?" When he pulled his hand from his bag, it was wrapped around a Poké Ball, not the cube. "Rosalita, you misled me, and we're gonna have to have a talk about that, but I still know which side I'm taking here! Anton-"

In a flash, the collared Electivire and Magmortar were upon Matt, responding to an order Fernando gave them with the gauntlet. Elective grabbed his arm to prevent him from opening Anton's Poké Ball, while Magmortar pointed one of his cannons at Matt's face. A fireball smoldered within, making his threat crystal clear.

"Do not be a fool and test me," Fernando warned him. The count then pointed his closed fist at the others, drawing the attention of the rest of his army to them. "That goes for the rest of you, too. I want our kingdom's property back, and I want you to give up your claim to the throne, Rosalita. Only then will I be able to give our home the security it needs."

With Matt immobilized, the others knew they had little chance of successfully fighting back against Fernando. Noel and Leon still had their Muk and Palossand, and Eleanor could contribute her Persian, but against all eleven Pokémon under Fernando's control at once, even Rosalita's full team wouldn't be able to win, with or without help. Nevertheless, the princess's instinct drove her to action, and she started to reach into her cloak for a Poké Ball.

Much to the relief of Rosalita and the others, a solution abruptly presented itself. Having had enough of Fernando's insolence, Shaymin snapped from its stupor and flew straight into Electivire. The force of its headbutt sent Electivire reeling, and Matt fell to his knees after being freed from her grip. Eleanor ran to help Matt up, while Shaymin shrieked and lashed its head around, generating a blade of air that drove Magmortar back when it made contact.

"To think I gave you the benefit of the doubt," Fernando said in disgust. "I thought your mind was merely poisoned by Grandfather's treason, yet here you are, siding against protecting the kingdom. It's time for you to wake up and fulfill the role you were brought here for."

Fernando didn't fully realize how he'd pushed Shaymin's buttons and played on its insecurities, but what he _also_ failed to realize was that Shaymin could do the same back to him.

The mythical Pokémon scoffed, then admonished the count, "You talk about making yourself worthy of the throne? Look around, you! Exploiting the resources of your realm to blackmail your way into power? Keep your promises, you!"

"Are you suggesting I'm doing what the previous siblings did?" When Fernando said this, Shaymin grinned. He'd taken its bait, and was clearly upset by its implications. "That I'm turning the kingdom against itself?"

"That is what I'm saying, you." Shaymin was well aware that it was fudging the truth, but for the moment, doing so seemed like the best option. "You would rather repeat your ancestors' mistakes than swallow your pride and change your course. May La Ciudad Dorada crumble to dust before I deem one like you worthy to reign!"

"So pompous for such a small creature." Despite his derision of Shaymin, Fernando gestured with his left hand, calling off the army. They retreated to the perimeter of the platform while he activated the gauntlet's projector. A number of images appeared before him, but the one he brought to the front was of a device with several rings circling around an orange stone. He flicked his fingers over the image, and in response, Heatran stomped to the forefront. "One final trial," he proposed. "Neither Heatran nor the Magma Stone that controls it comes from this land, so you cannot say I am using the kingdom against itself. You and Rosalita against Heatran and I… that will prove my worth."

"I accept your challenge, you." Shaymin turned back to the princess and said, "Come to my side, Rosalita. Lead me."

Rosalita hesitated. She had an idea in mind for how to defeat Heatran, but still, the reality of the situation worried her. For one, as much as she wanted to, she didn't trust Fernando to simply give up his quest if he lost. She knew how he thought. He'd gone too far and done too much to simply surrender, so from the start, Rosalita suspected another trap. Furthermore, while she had faith in Shaymin's decision and was well aware it could hold its own against Heatran, the fact that it faced a Fire-and-Steel-type was still daunting. Speaking strictly in terms of type, Heatran held a significant advantage.

"He says it's one last trial," Sheena said, approaching Rosalita from the right. "That means it's a trial for you, too. You've passed every other one with flying colors, so I know you can do this."

"I agree," Matt concurred, standing on the princess's left. "You can do this, Rosalita. Don't worry…" He reached into his bag and finished, "I've got a plan that should work. Beat Heatran, and it should work."

"That you two stand with me, even now…" Rosalita's eyes watered as she smiled, but she didn't cry. "Thank you."

With the backing of her friends and allies, Rosalita felt no fear. She approached Shaymin and straightened herself, standing at her full height with the poise of a queen.

"I must give you credit for the strength you've gained," Fernando admitted, "but that strength is being used in a misguided fashion. It doesn't have to be this way… you could surrender the throne and be my knight, fighting for the kingdom just like we promised each other."

"You're correct, it doesn't have to be this way." Rosalita stared across the platform at her brother and Heatran, her features fixed in a look of absolute determination. "But I won't surrender. Not now, not ever. I'm going home after this and you're coming with me."

"There won't be a home to go back to if we don't protect it!" Fernando spread his arms and sighed in resignation. "You will never see the truth until I demonstrate it to you. So be it. After I prove my worth here I will awaken Regigigas and you shall see that I've always been right." The count closed his left hand and thrust his fist forward, calling out, "Heatran, Magma Storm!"

Both Rosalita and Shaymin had expected Magma Storm to be Fernando's opening move, so they were ready for it. Before the command even fully left Fernando's mouth, his sister countered, "Evade it and use Air Slash!"

"Way ahead of you!" the mythical Pokémon enthusiastically announced.

As the fiery cyclone erupted from Heatran's mouth, Shaymin initially dove toward it before veering to the right. Heatran tried to follow after it, but she wasn't fast enough to keep up. Shaymin danced through the air, skillfully weaving around Heatran's onslaught with deft arcs and somersaults. The Magma Storm soon abated, having accomplished little besides filling the air above the platform with black smoke, and Shaymin responded by flinging blades of air into Heatran's armored face. While her part-Steel typing gave her a formidable natural defense against Flying-type moves, the blows still sent enough of a shock through her body that she shuddered and growled.

Rosalita noted the presence of the fumes overhead, but elected not to use them. Instead, she couldn't resist trying one more time to appeal to her brother. "I am serious, Fernando, you need to stop this! There's still time! You won't get what you want no matter what happens, so please, stop!"

"I won't get what I want unless I win," Fernando bitterly replied, making his sister's heart sink. "Nevermind that this is all you, Mother and Father left for me. Heatran!" As soon as Fernando raised his left arm into the air, the Fire-and-Steel-type shook off her daze and returned to her battle-ready stance. "Get into a better vantage point and use Flash Cannon!"

"Keep it in place, Shaymin! Air Slash again!"

The mythical Pokémon was able to get ahead of its opponent and send another Air Slash cutting toward her as she charged, but this time, she fired a ray of gleaming silver light straight through it. The blades of air dissipated harmlessly, leaving Shaymin to take the full force of the Flash Cannon that broke them apart. It squeaked painfully as it pitched through the air, much to the dismay of Rosalita and the others.

"Shaymin!" the princess cried, taking her eyes off the still-advancing Heatran.

As if on cue, Shaymin righted itself and grinned. "It'll take more than that to defeat me, you!" it affirmed to its companion.

Before Rosalita could say anything further, however, a glint in the corner of Shaymin's eye caught its attention. While it and its allies were distracted, Heatran had marched straight to the back of the viewing platform, where she used her cross-shaped feet to climb up on the wall next to the entry passage. Having gotten the vantage point Fernando called for, she had opened her mouth and aimed another shot of light at her foe. Shaymin caught notice of the oncoming Flash Cannon in enough time to only get clipped by the blast. The Grass-and-Flying-type was thrown to the ground, but had little to show for the blow than some scrapes and wounded pride.

"Now, you!" it told Rosalita. "Let's do it!"

"Indeed." Sweeping her hand from under her cloak, Rosalita played her trump card, the one thing she and Shaymin knew that Fernando did not. "Shaymin, Earth Power!"

"What?!" Caught by surprise in exactly the way his sister hoped, Fernando frantically manipulated the data from his gauntlet's projection. He was searching for any tactic he could use to get Heatran to escape the energy Shaymin sent pulsing through the ground, but from her place on the wall, there was no refuge for Heatran to turn to.

The golden, glowing veins worked their way to and then up the wall before erupting under Heatran's feet, sending her crashing violently onto the balcony. A number of stones broke off and fell along with her, forcing Matt and the others to run out of their way. Heatran voiced an angry rumble from deep within her throat as she righted herself after landing on her back. When she did get to her feet, however, her legs were wobbly, a sign of just how badly Shaymin's Earth Power had depleted her stamina.

"I will not let this happen," Fernando muttered to himself. Thrusting his arm forward, he commanded, "Dark Pulse!"

Heatran again opened her giant mouth, this time allowing a chain of dark energy rings to burst out of it. The assault came too fast for Shaymin to escape it, and the small explosion that occurred upon impact threw the mythical Pokémon across the platform.

"Shaymin!" Rosalita cried out, alarmed by the sudden shift in the battle's pace. She had been ready to have Shaymin again attack with Air Slash, but she could see from the way Shaymin flinched that calling for it would accomplish nothing.

Fernando, on the other hand, couldn't restrain himself. "Now will you finally acknowledge my worth?" he demanded, though he didn't wait for an answer before adding, "Soon, you will have no choice but to give me what I want! Heatran, use Magma Storm to end this!"

Once more, the tornado of fire that comprised Heatran's signature move erupted from her gaping iron maw. It seemed as if Shaymin stood no chance of escape, let alone survival, from where it was lying on the dusty floor. Rosalita and her allies all felt their perception of time slow as they watched Magma Storm draw ever closer to the princess's partner. The one thing they all feared - Fernando actually winning - appeared to be inevitable.

Yet, when all seemed lost, a rush of energy flowed through Shaymin's body. The burning vortex glinted in its eyes, but instead of feeling fear, it was taken by a determination to not lose. While it had no way to fly out of Magma Storm's path in time, it instead simply rolled to the side. Magma Storm sailed harmlessly past, exploding in a fiery blast against the wall. Matt's coat, as well as Rosalita's hair and cloak, blew in the gusty backlash. Shaymin, meanwhile, was left covered in dirt but otherwise unharmed.

"You…" Fernando grit his teeth. Mythical or not, how could such a foolish, _tiny_ Pokémon be giving him such trouble, when he had Heatran and so many others at his disposal? He had to consciously stop himself from sending in the rest of his army at that that point. His hand was already up before he remembered that the fight was meant to be a trial.

Rosalita glanced around herself, her brother's hesitation affording her a moment to think. When she saw the cloud of smoke Magma Storm kicked up, an idea popped into her head. "Shaymin, use that smoke to power a Seed Flare!"

"Excellent suggestion!" Shaymin replied. It lifted itself into the air and glided straight into the plume, where it began sucking the fumes into its body. The dirt already on Shaymin got pulled in as well.

"I won't let you!" Fernando snapped. "Dark Pulse! _Now!_ "

Heatran obeyed, but even though her blast of shadowy energy scored a direct hit, Shaymin's intense focus rendered its impact largely ineffective. The mythical Pokémon remained airborne as if nothing had happened.

As the last traces of the smoke disappeared into its body, Shaymin's eyes shot open. "Now take this, you!" it shrieked.

A blinding light radiated from Shaymin's body, followed mere seconds later by a tremendous explosion. Fernando had to hide behind Heatran to avoid the brunt of the blast, the Pokémon holding in place despite being dazed by Seed Flare. Matt, Sheena, Eleanor, Noel and Leon were all blown into whatever was behind each of them. As the force and glow of the light abated, none of them could understand how Rosalita avoided being swept up in it.

"This is our moment to claim victory, Shaymin. Earth Power!"

Shaymin screeched the last syllable of its name as a battle cry, reared back, and pounded its forelegs into the floor. Like before, golden veins of glowing energy ripped through the ground and erupted directly below Heatran's feet. The Fire-and-Steel-type Pokémon howled in pain and was thrown into the air despite her tremendous weight.

Fernando's mind went blank as he watched what was unfolding before him. He'd issued the challenge for another trial to Shaymin because he was supremely confident Heatran couldn't fail against it. One Magma Storm would have put an end to Shaymin and Rosalita's opposition, or so he thought. Yet, right there in front of him, Heatran was crashing to the ground in complete and utter defeat.

"That's it, Rosalita! That should be enough for my plan to work!" Matt stepped forward, clutching a green-and-black sphere in his hand. It was a Dusk Ball, and it represented what personal payback Matt could get on Fernando. "This is for taking our grandfather away from Amanda and I, you!"

With that, Matt threw the Dusk Ball at Heatran, who was lying prone on her back. Instead of the bright glow most Poké Balls used, it sucked Heatran in using a strange black light. It closed up around its quarry, fell to the floor, and started rocking back and forth. Many anxious gazes locked on to the sphere, awaiting an outcome that ultimately came with a single ping.

"Impossible…" Fernando uttered, his eyes going wide as he backed away. He went to his gauntlet's projections with the intent of using the Magma Stone to take Heatran back, only to be met by a second surprise. The Magma Stone cracked and crumbled, leaving the mechanism's rings to collapse into a tangled pile of metal. If there was any doubt about what had happened, the words "off line" appearing in the projection erased it.

"Your own ambition was your undoing," Matt told the count after collecting the Dusk Ball with Heatran inside. He didn't say it out loud, but he got some satisfaction out of rubbing Fernando's failure in his face. "You didn't put Heatran in one of those Doradan Poké Balls, like all the other Pokémon you gave Noel and Leon. I bet you thought you could use Heatran secretly that way, since you had the Magma Stone. Well, you just made it possible for me to capture it instead. _Congratulations_."

Fernando backed up further, but said nothing in reply. The angry stares of the people surrounding him had him sufficiently stunned him into silence for the time being.

"Matt's right, Fernando. Your ambition backfired." Rosalita extended a hand toward her brother. "It's time to go home. You have done so much to wound our family and to wound this kingdom, but you're still my brother. With my authority, I can offer you clemency under our laws."

The offer of forgiveness from his sister ironically helped Fernando refocus his mind on his goals. "I cannot let it come to that, Rosalita…"

Before anyone could stop him, Fernando closed his fist and pointed the gauntlet at Matt. His Dusknoir's collar flashed red, and the Ghost-type used Ally Switch to swap places with Kommo-o, the nearest Pokémon to Matt. Dusknoir grabbed Matt and teleported again, this time switching with Roserade to reach Fernando's side. He then threw Matt down at his master's feet.

"Stop this, you!" Fernando ignored Shaymin's order and reached into Matt's bag, so it started flying toward him. Honchkrow, Togekiss and Yanmega attacked Shaymin to protect him, battering it away with Steel Wing, Air Slash and Ancient Power.

"You lost your own trial, Fernando!" Rosalita scolded him. She was disappointed at what he was doing, but not surprised. "Stop this! Have you completely lost your mind?!"

"Think whatever you want of me," he replied, his voice devoid of emotion. "I still care about you, Rosalita. That might be hard to believe, I know… it wasn't easy for me to pin my actions on you. It wasn't. But this is all I have left. If I don't see this through, there was no reason for me to exist. I didn't want to lose you, too, but I will walk my path alone if I have to."

Hearing those words deeply crushed Rosalita. In an instant, she could hear his voice echoing in her head, haunting her with things she remembered.

 _"It's going to be you and me, Rosalita. We'll be the best leaders the kingdom ever had!"_

" _Don't you be scared of that stuff anymore, I'll stay here to keep you safe."_

" _We have to make another promise right now. Now that we know about this, it's not enough to be the best leaders the kingdom ever had. We have to be better than the last set of twins. Promise me that. Promise me that we will never end up that way."_

" _What could you possibly know that I don't?! Every day I've been training and gathering knowledge for how to best defend this land! How can you protect the kingdom as well as I could?"_

" _It may not be right away, but you will see in time that the outsiders do not respect La Ciudad Dorada or its culture. They come here and take things from us while never appreciating what it is that we have here. That's what I've learned. When the day comes that you understand that indelible truth, that will be the time for our promises to be fulfilled."_

And now what he'd just said. _"If I don't see this through, there was no reason for me to exist. I didn't want to lose you, too, but I will walk my path alone if I have to."_ That line repeated in her mind like a cruel, endless broken record.

"H-how could you…" she finally managed to say, holding the sides of her head. "I wanted to save you…"

"That you would prioritize a mere tool like me over the kingdom you are sworn to protect says more than enough. It's a pity, really..." Matt tried to push Fernando away while he was distracted speaking to his sister, but the count easily held him down until he collected the puzzle box. He then stood up and backed away, allowing Dusknoir room to teleport and throw Matt back to the others. "We are done arguing, Rosalita. The future of our home is at stake, and…" Fernando hoisted the box in triumph before finishing, "...in my hands, that future will gleam as brightly as this holy city around us."

"You won't get the future you long for if you do this!" While Sheena and Eleanor helped Matt up, Rosalita decided to try pleading with her brother one last time. On some level she knew it would prove fruitless, but she just couldn't give up. "Your path will only end in ruin!"

"We'll see." Fernando turned his back on his sister and her allies, and his army of Pokémon closed ranks to protect him from them. With the puzzle box in his right hand and his left clutching the staff, he marched to the altar overlooking the Golden City and placed the cube upon it. "Regigigas!" he called to the immense Pokémon in the distance, while raising both of his arms in a gesture of supplication to it. "I am Fernando Renato the Eighth, descendant of your servant Fernando the Great. I come before you with an entreaty for the protection of our home. Invaders from the outside are coming to tear apart our kingdom! I beg of you, awaken and be our shield once again! Please, Regigigas!"

At first, nothing happened. Rosalita, Matt and the others could see that fact by peering between the Pokémon. But, right as soon as they started entertaining the notion that Fernando's plan didn't work, three familiar voices echoed through the cave. They seemed to come from both nowhere and everywhere, and spoke in perfect unison.

 _"A body of rock. To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

" _A body of steel. To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

" _A body of ice. To summon the king, such a thing must be obtained."_

As soon as the voices of Regirock, Registeel and Regice faded, brilliant light again poured from the puzzle box. It was visible enough that the group instinctively knew the worst-case scenario was taking place.

"Fernando, put that thing down! You're going to _destroy_ La Ciudad Dorada!" Matt yelled at him, "not save it!"

"Your time is up, Chiaki." The cube levitated off the altar, its light glittering in Fernando's joy-filled eyes. "You will not poison my mind and lead me astray! I will not be my grandfather or my father! I will be _better!_ "

The puzzle box dissolved into light at that moment, as if it were bonded to Fernando's thoughts. Mere fractions of a second after it vanished, the entire cavern started to shake, and the air filled with a deafening rumble.

"An earthquake?!" Eleanor cried out in panic.

"He… he actually did it…" Rosalita closed her fist and pounded it against her side. "That miserable fool awoke Regigigas!"

"Tell us what we need to do now!" Sheena urged the princess. "You know more about what this means than any of us!"

Rosalita took a moment to think, then told her allies, "We must return to Lingote Palace and fortify the city. He will come for Shaymin, and at this point, I do not know what he'll do to get it. We need to make sure the kingdom is not destroyed by Regigigas's wrath."

"That makes sense," Matt said to himself, holding his chin and looking down.

Above the group, the ceiling of the cavern suddenly began cracking apart, and pieces crashed down around them. The first forced Matt and Eleanor to yelp and jump back, nearly colliding with each other in the process. Shaymin destroyed a few smaller rocks with its Air Slash, but doing so quickly became pointless.

When the group reached the exit, Matt and Rosalita turned around to give Fernando once last glare. They couldn't see him through his army, and he wouldn't have cared about the act anyway, but they did spot Noel and Leon still dazed on the platform.

"Move it, you two!" Matt yelled at them. "What are you doing?!"

"R-Right," Noel stuttered. Her usual cockiness was completely gone. "Bro, let's-"

Not one of the group noticed the stone falling directly above Noel until it was far too late. When it struck her, her world instantly went black. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she crumpled to the floor in an unconscious heap.

"Sis!" Leon cried out.

"Bring her with you!" Rosalita said. "We will help her on the way!"

Leon followed the princess's direction without a word. He lifted his sister onto his back and started to run for the tunnel, but just when it appeared he would escape, a huge chunk of the ceiling broke off and blocked his path.

"Shaymin, help him by breaking that stone with Air Slash!"

Rosalita truly did want to save the pair, but the giant rock proved impervious to both her intentions and Shaymin's assaults. The mythical Pokémon struck it over and over but managed to cut only small pieces out of it.

On the other side, Leon stared at the obstruction and felt a sense of despair consume him. He was strong enough to climb it without a problem, but it would be no easy task while carrying Noel, and he wouldn't leave her behind. No, absolutely not. There would never be any situation where he'd abandon her. She always knew what to do, and her guidance was the only reason he'd survived the mean streets of Pyrite. Since she was the brain of their team, though, he had no idea what to do in that moment with her aid cut off.

"Matt, I need help!" he could hear Rosalita say. "Use Rhyperior and Aggron to-"

"No, you get out of here!" Leon roared, interrupting her. "Don't worry 'bout us!"

"I made a promise to you!" Rosalita countered.

"You have something out there you gotta protect, Princess!" Resigning himself to his fate, Leon fell to his knees and laid Noel on the ground. "All I got is right here with me. If Sis is gonna buy the farm, I'm goin' with her."

"I-" The tremors wracking the cavern intensified, forcing Rosalita to accept Leon's choice between choking tears. "Your bravery will not be forgotten. I will tell your story."

With that, the group entered the tunnel and fled the Golden City. Fernando didn't notice them leave, nor did he overhear any of their prior conversation. He was far too obsessed with the process unfolding before him.

The lights on Regigigas's body slowly flashed, making Fernando's eye twitch. As he raised his arms to the titan once again, he started weeping openly.

"Mother, Father, Rosalita… I always worked for the betterment of La Ciudad Dorada, but no matter what I did, you scorned my ideas…" Unable to stand up straight any longer because of his overwhelming emotions, Fernando braced himself on the altar. "Look at me now. I did it! I saved the kingdom! You have to acknowledge me now… acknowledge that my existence has a purpose! That I wasn't a mistake of fate! I had to have been born for a reason, and _this is it!_ "

Seemingly in response to the count's plea, Regigigas's lights flashed faster. Not long after, its own robotic beeping started sounding across the Golden City.

"Gi… gi… gi…"

 **END of CHAPTER 6**


	8. War and Peace: The Beautiful Lie

This chapter was originally planned to be one with the next chapter, but I split it up to make each half easier to digest.

The character Laura who appears in these two chapters is an original creation of my friend Ren, and is used with permission. Also appearing in a cameo role is Door, the main character of Minty's excellent Nuzlocke fic Electric Sheep. She has generously allowed me to include Door and her Audino, Knives, here. I encourage you to check out Electric Sheep if you haven't yet.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 7:** War and Peace/The Beautiful Lie

-:-

"We should not have left them behind! I failed them!"

The mountains themselves seemed to be quaking apart behind the group's vehicle as they sped away. Eleanor was pushing its engine to the limits, just barely avoiding overheating it. Yet, Rosalita felt neither the velocity of her ride nor the violent tremors radiating through the earth. She was too distracted by the fact that they'd left Noel and Leon behind. Sure, they had once been her enemies, working at Fernando's behest, but that was no longer the case. She'd given her word to them, and she owed it to them to follow through.

"Rosalita, listen-" Sheena tried to say.

"No!" Rosalita drove her fist into the metal side of the vehicle with such force that Matt was surprised she didn't break her hand. "I entered into a treaty with them, and by leaving them to die, I went back on our agreement! What sort of leader does such a thing?!"

Matt opened his mouth to say something, but he was cut off when Sheena seized Rosalita's shoulders. Her action was so sudden that the princess gasped in surprise.

"You have to listen to me," the priestess insisted, locking her blue eyes with Rosalita's green ones. "Leon wanted you to go. He knew there's something bigger at play here, that there is something important only you can do. You didn't do anything wrong. Besides, those two have lived through a lot. I have faith that they'll find a way out."

Leon wanted her to go. Even in her panic, Rosalita knew Sheena was right. She could hear it in her head.

 _"You have something out there you gotta protect, Princess!"_

"Something I have to protect…" she repeated. Reorienting herself to the reality of her situation, Rosalita took several deep breaths, her mind focusing more every time she exhaled. She blinked, and when she reopened her eyes, the familiar fire in them was back. "You are correct. If they survive, I will make it right with them once this is over… but for now, we must make sure the kingdom is safe."

"Yeah, um, about that…" Matt interjected. When Sheena and Rosalita turned to him, he poked his finger toward the cloudy, darkened sky. "Should we be worried about that?"

Hovering in place high above them was the skyship. Sheena gasped when she saw it, but Rosalita only grew angrier.

"So _that_ is how he got here with such haste," she hissed.

"What is it?" Matt and Sheena asked together.

"The skyship owned by the royal family," Rosalita explained. "It's been kept in working order despite not being launched for many, many years… to think he brought it out now…"

"Let's just recap things here, then." Matt pinched his temples. "Fernando has an army of a dozen Pokémon completely at his beck and call. He's got a flying battleship, _and_ Regigigas is awake. Have I got that all straight?"

"More or less."

As soon as Rosalita replied to him, Matt sighed.

"I better warn Cassy," he said.

-:-

Back in La Ciudad Dorada, neither the residents nor the tourists had any idea of the kind of chaos coming their way. There _was_ a sense of uncertainty in the city, which had settled in when they saw the skyship depart, but nothing else seemed unusual besides how dark the sky had become. That only gave the impression that it would soon rain, however, so the city was as peaceful as ever.

Cassy had decided to go out among the people in the market. Her work in the archive was complete, so with nothing else to do, she was looking to spend some time relaxing. She was sitting at one of the stands, which had a colorful sign promoting the locally-grown Poké Beans and fresh juice it sold. At her side, wearing a dark leather bag around his body, was her Swellow.

She took a gulp of juice from the cup in her hand and held it in her mouth, not immediately swallowing it. There was only one more thing left for her to do on her trip to La Ciudad Dorada, and she was anxious to get to it. She had no choice but to wait, though. It wasn't something she could do right away.

"Yo. You, with the Swellow."

Cassy heard the voice addressing her from behind, but she kept to herself and didn't acknowledge it. She swallowed her juice and then tossed a red Poké Bean to Swellow, who caught it in his beak. He chirped in happy satisfaction after eating it.

"Hey."

All of a sudden, the woman who was talking to Cassy appeared in the seat next to her. That was the one downside of staying in a bubble the way she did - people could easily approach without notice, and often did. She jumped, nearly knocking her drink on its side as she did so, and scowled at the trainer with the navy blue hair.

"What do you want?" she grumbled.

"Hey, no need to be so grouchy, you know?" The youthful woman largely played off Cassy's ill-mannered greeting. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," Cassy replied. She was completely serious, but the woman just laughed, further frustrating her.

"Hey, that one doesn't count!"

The way the trainer playfully feigned indignation vexed Cassy. While she tried to figure out how best to approach the situation, she noticed the woman's necklace. The drill hanging from it was initially of no interest to Cassy, but the stone next to it pulled her gaze in. Soft tones of blue, green and yellow blended within the small sphere, surrounding a helix shape at its core.

"A Key Stone?" Cassy asked, her eyes going wide in wonder. "Who are you?"

"Yup!" the young woman confirmed with a beaming smile. She stuck out one of her hands and introduced herself, "My name's Laura. Nice to meet'cha."

Seeing no other way to move the conversation forward, Cassy reached out and put her hand in Laura's fingerless glove. "Cassy. I… wait, Laura?"

"One of a million Lauras out there," Laura laughed.

Cassy blinked. At first, she had no recollection of who the person approaching her was, but when she learned the trainer's name, something in her mind clicked. The navy blue hair under a red-and-white bandana. A jacket that matched the bandana in terms of color. A black undershirt and monochromatic shorts. And of course, the Key Stone set into a drill on a necklace.

"I know you," Matt's partner finally said. "You won the Hoenn League a few years ago, didn't you?"

"Aha, I get that a lot." Laura pulled back from the handshake and grasped her Key Stone. "I guess it comes with the territory."

"No, I remember now," Cassy said. "You and your Swampert made a big splash when you won the League, and then you were everywhere. Television. Radio. BuzzNav. Virtually every magazine published in Hoenn. You were _everywhere_. But why are you here?"

"That kind of celebrity isn't really my jam anymore." Laura shrugged. "My buddy Swampert and I are just traveling the world now and enjoying life. We came here to do that, but also, we wanted to try one of those Alliance Battles. And that's why I saw your Swellow!"

"S-Swellow?" Cassy defensively put her hand on the bag Swellow was wearing. "I don't think you want us as Alliance Battle partners. We're not very good."

"Nonsense. I can tell by Swellow's wonderful sheen that you've raised it very well." Laura got up from her seat to scratch Swellow's head. The moment she rose, Cassy took the bag off of him. "Don't sell yourself short," the former Hoenn League champion urged Cassy. "I used to not have much confidence in myself, either."

"That surprises me," Cassy admitted, "but thank you anyway, I guess. I can't do it now, though."

"Hm?" Laura looked away from Swellow, who was enjoying her scratches. "Why's that, if I might ask?"

"I'm helping my… friend," Cassy hesitatingly explained. "He's off on some adventure out in the desert. I can't do anything until he doesn't need my help anym-"

Suddenly, Cassy's phone started ringing. She jumped at the unexpected interruption and fumbled it out, but when she saw it was Matt calling, she relaxed.

"Of course he gets me in trouble the moment I bring him up," she sarcastically said before raising the phone to her ear and answering the call. "What happened now?"

 _"Cassy! Cassy, listen to me!"_ The urgency in Matt's voice wasn't something Cassy expected to hear, and it made her tighten her grip on her phone. _"You have to do exactly what I tell you to! Right now!"_

"You tell me what happened, then," she replied.

 _"It's a long story, that's putting it mildly. All you need to know is that Fernando ambushed us at the Golden City and woke up Regigigas! It's coming!"_

Cassy's face darkened as she thought back to what she told the count earlier. "Did he hurt you?"

 _"What?"_ Matt seemed puzzled by her question. _"That doesn't matter right now. Listen to me. We're on our way back to Lingote Palace now. Rosalita wants you to meet us in the garage there. She says to just tell the guards she's turning herself in and you're taking them to her."_

"Fine, got it," Cassy said after a beat. "He better not have hurt you, though."

With that, Cassy ended the call. As she put her phone away, Laura approached her.

"Something's going on, isn't it?" the former champion asked, her usual light hearted attitude gone.

"Yeah, that's an understatement," Cassy replied. She swallowed the last of her juice in one big gulp and threw some money on the counter, then added, "I'll see you later."

At first, Laura simply watched Cassy run off to the elevators leading up the Sacred Hill. Once she boarded one, Laura sat back down and took out her Swampert's Poké Ball.

"How d'ya like that, buddy?" she asked the sphere. "Guess trouble always did have a way of finding us, huh?"

-:-

An explosion blew a huge hole out of the rock face where the path into the mountain started, but with all the earthquakes, it could barely be heard. Fernando emerged from the opening on his Dragonite's back, the Dragon-and-Flying-type's mouth still sparking from the Thunder she used to tear open the hole. She ascended toward the skyship until her master made her stop. From his vantage point, Fernando watched the rest of his army follow after him. Those that could fly did so, while Probopass levitated the rest using Telekinesis.

"Most excellent," Fernando said once all his Pokémon were assembled. "You will not betray me, not like the rest of them."

The rumbling of the earthquakes soon grew even louder, and not long after that, ear-splitting crashes joined the cacophony. Fernando was unfazed by all the noise. In fact, it only made him more excited as he made his way to the ship.

"Of course, you still await your vanguard," he told his army.

As if on cue, a gigantic fist punched through the mountainside, followed closely by a second. Each one had three digits coming out of a disc-like shape. They were the hands of the protector, the great titan Regigigas.

All the rumbling and crashing reached a crescendo as Regigigas fully ripped through the mountain. The tremendous avalanche this caused consumed everything in its path, leaving the Pokémon of the mountains to flee lest they get caught up in it as well. In its wake, the Golden City and the path leading there was left fully exposed.

Normally, La Ciudad Dorada's protector would never have caused such destruction. Regigigas was usually content to spend the centuries in its dormant state, rousing only to bless a new king, but this time was different. Regigigas was fully awake, and it was _furious_. The thunderous storm of beeping and buzzing it gave off made that very, very clear. It felt the wishes of the one summoning it through the Gaia conducted by the puzzle box, and Fernando's corrupt intent enraged it. Such manipulation of the land's gifts was familiar to the titan - familiar as something that was meant to never happen again. It was compelled to put a stop to his delusional ambitions, there was simply no other way about it.

Fernando jumped off Dragonite and stood at the bow of the skyship, watching as Regigigas pointed one of its vast arms at the craft. He remained calm and unconcerned, even when a cluster of glittering, diamond-hard rocks took shape between the titan's fingers.

"So even you misunderstand, Regigigas," the count noted, expressing genuine pity for the creature. "Don't worry, I will help you."

That 'help' came in the form of an onslaught set off when Fernando pointed his left fist at Regigigas. Every member of his army trained their attacks on the nascent Diamond Storm in the titan's hand. Fire, water, lightning, wind, poison, iron and deafening sound waves all converged within Regigigas's grip, triggering a massive explosion. Individually, the Pokémon under Fernando's command were like specks of dust compared to Regigigas, but their combined power was enough to stun even the great titan. It reeled and groaned robotically from the blast, and its temporarily incapacitated state presented Fernando the opening he was waiting for. With a grand, sweeping gesture, he activated his control gauntlet's projection and entered a command into it.

In response to its pilot's direction, the cargo hold of the skyship creaked open, releasing numerous pieces of metal. Each one had a glowing blue bulb on it, signifying the Arcane Science that enabled them to fly. They formed a circle around Regigigas, and although the titan could not discern their exact purpose, it knew they posed a threat.

"Gi-gi-ga!" Its cry, both robotic and strangely human-sounding at the same time, shook the earth as bolts of lightning shot out from all over its body. They managed to repel Fernando's machines for a time. As soon as Regigigas's Thunder abated, however, the devices returned to their formation.

Regigigas then swung one of its immense fists down like a club at the machines in front of it, but they simply moved out of the way. All that the Knock Off accomplished was smashing a giant hole in the ground. The ring of machines closed in on Regigigas, floating away from every swing it took as if they had minds of their own.

"You…" From his vantage point on the skyship, Fernando cast a sad gaze upon his kingdom's guardian. "Even you turn your back on me, Regigigas? That is why this weapon is necessary. If you loathe me for this, too, I will shoulder it. I'm sorry."

The count snapped his fist closed in front of his gauntlet's holographic control screen, inciting his machines to descend on Regigigas like a pack of piranhas. Regigigas flailed wildly in its attempts to remove them, crushing trees like matches under its feet as it struggled. Yet, no matter what it did, its efforts were in vain. The devices spread across its body and fused together, forming a vest-like suit of metal armor. Once it had Regigigas restrained, the armor generated an energy pulse that caused the titan further pain. It thrashed, stumbled and fell backward into a sitting position, nearly cracking the ground with its immense weight.

There was a brief moment of dead silence, and then, Regigigas rose. Moving slowly and deliberately, emitting a low buzz all the while, it got back up on its feet and then stood perfectly still.

The seven dots running across its face and down the middle of its body, which were ordinarily black, now gave off a sinister red glow.

"Now you understand, Regigigas!" Fernando exclaimed. "Now we can protect La Ciudad Dorada from all outsiders who would do it harm, fulfilling the reason we exist side-by-side! Unfortunately…"

Fernando pivoted to the left and took out an ornate spyglass. He peered at La Ciudad Dorada and Lingote Palace in the distance, then down at the desert separating him from the city. It was then that he saw the vehicle carrying his sister and their allies there. Rosalita and Matt were staring back toward the Golden City, watching the unfolding scene with horror on their faces.

"...I have proven my dedication to the kingdom's defense, but I cannot take solace in just that. I must drink from the Fountain of Life to know I am acknowledged. I must know." He stowed the spyglass away and turned back to his army. All of them, including Regigigas, quietly awaited his command. "We must defeat my sister and invalidate her undeserved claim to the throne!" he announced to them. "She refuses to allow this transfer to take place peacefully, so we _must_ fight! All of you, aid me in taking Lingote Palace! Once we win this battle, she will have to surrender! This is our moment to claim victory!" Fernando pointed his left fist toward La Ciudad Dorada, drawing the attention of his army to it. "Go forth!" he ordered them.

Every one of Fernando's Pokémon responded with a flat cry before setting off. Like before, those capable of independent flight traveled that way, while Probopass brought the rest along using Telekinesis.

"No, you stay with me," Fernando said to Dragonite before she could take flight. He recalled her to her clockwork ball, then turned to Regigigas. "Come along, Regigigas. We have much work to do."

-:-

"Ugh… what's all that racket 'bout…?"

Down on the ground, Noel slowly sat up. When she saw the devastation around her, she jolted fully awake and gasped. Not even in Orre's desert had she seen such ruin. Crushed trees on land beaten to a pulp surrounded her.

"Sis!"

Before she even knew what was happening, Leon tackled her back to the ground. He wrapped her in an embrace so tight that it almost impeded her breathing.

"Bro…?" she whispered. "What happened?"

"There was a rock that knocked you upside the head!" Leon released his sister, finally giving her a chance to see his face. Much to her surprise, he was openly crying. "I thought we were gonna bite the dust, Sis! I was givin' up, and I told Princess to leaves us, but then Regigigas ripped open a way out, so I carried you and-"

"That's enough, Bro. Say no more." Noel rose to her feet and dusted herself off. "Thanks for gettin' me outta there. Honestly, I owe you an apology for takin' this stupid job in the first place. Where's that little punk Fernando?"

"Up there." Leon pointed at the skyship, which was flying away and leading Regigigas back to the city. "But what are we gonna do? He took all those Pokémon away."

Noel looked at her wrist, where the burned remains of her control device still hung. She spit on the ground and then tore the broken bracelet off. "We ain't gonna need 'em. We still got Muk and Palossand, and we got each other, like always."

"You're always the brain, Sis," Leon said, content with what Noel was telling him. "So what d'you say? Wanna go serve up that revenge to him?"

Noel smirked. "If it's a dish best served cold, what we're gonna throw in his face'll be _frozen_."

-:-

"He's coming this way…" Matt said in shock as he watched the skyship turn towards them. "And why did Regigigas stop attacking him? What did he do?!"

"The armor," Rosalita deduced. She was remaining cool and collected somehow, but Matt sensed it was a forced act. "I think it must work the same way the collars do. If my brother planned for this, he would surely have created a method to control even Regigigas."

"That makes sense," Sheena agreed. "I've seen something like this before. Marcus, the one who my people call the Betrayer…" Her voice grew hesitant, though the others couldn't tell why. "When he attempted to… destroy Arceus in the ancient past, h-he… used enchanted armor to control his Pokémon. This is done with technology, but for the same principle."

Horrified by what it was seeing and hearing, Shaymin perched on the edge of the vehicle and uttered, "I can't believe Regigigas was enslaved, you…"

"It's about time you explain what you're hiding." Rosalita and Shaymin couldn't tell if Matt's demand was directed at one of them or both at once. "Starting with that photograph Cassy showed us. Was that from a time when my grandfather was acting as the overseer of the trials?"

"Yes," the princess confessed. The moment she finally admitted the truth, she felt a weight lift from her shoulders. "I knew from the beginning, when Cassy displayed that photograph, what it was. And I knew of Professor Chiaki's role before I even met you." Rosalita bowed to Matt. "I am sorry for misleading you all this time."

Matt gave no reply. Was he so angry that it kept him silent? With her head down, Rosalita couldn't tell. She rolled her eyes upward just in time to see him turn away.

"You were wrong to hide it, I'm not going to lie. I came here because I wanted to find closure and understand why he was killed. You kept that from me until now."

"I'm sorry!" Rosalita repeated, putting even more force into her apology. "I should hav-"

"But I understand why you did it." Rosalita was so surprised by Matt's interruption that she shot up straight from her bow. "The pressure on you must be so immense… I can't imagine what it's like. So I forgive you."

"Th-thank you." It was difficult for Rosalita to find the words to express her gratitude at first.

"Don't worry about it. We've got bigger problems to be concerned about right now, but…" Matt frowned. He worried that what he was about to say might cross into sensitive territory, but there was no way he could hold it back. "...I have one more question. _Why_ did Fernando VI want an independent overseer of the trials in the first place? I understand now what my grandfather was doing here, but I need to know why he was doing it. I need to know because that mission is what got him killed, and he wanted Amanda and I to inherit it. So _why_ , Rosalita?"

Matt's earnest, pleading question cut right to Rosalita's soul, but as much as she wanted to, she couldn't answer it. "I do not know," she sadly said, bringing her fist up against her chest.

"Then there's someone else I have to ask."

Until that point, Shaymin hadn't been listening to the conversation all that well. It heard Matt and Rosalita talking, sure, but the meaning of their words didn't register in its mind. When Matt fixed his gaze upon it, Shaymin almost didn't realize it.

"What, you?" Once again, Shaymin was fudging the truth by acting naive. It instinctively knew the time it feared had arrived. "Is there something you want?"

"It is not just him." A chill ran through Shaymin's body when it heard Rosalita speak. She didn't often take such a tone, but when she did, it was a sign she was focused and deadly serious about what she was saying. "I wish to know why my grandfather sought Professor Chiaki as well. Not just that, you have been acting strangely for some time now. It's time for you to tell us the truth, Shaymin."

Shaymin took a step back. It wanted a way out of the situation, but the more it searched for one, the more it realized it had been pushed into a corner. There was no escape.

Finally, the mythical Pokémon turned away from its human companions and hung its head. "Hundreds of years of work, and it ends like this," it muttered, just loud enough for its audience to hear. "I guess in a way, I always knew it would be you, Rosalita. So much has already changed. Perhaps that is why I selected you."

Rosalita cocked her head. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying…" Shaymin lowered its head even further and pressed its eyes shut. The moment it dreaded for so long had arrived. "I'm saying I lied, you! I have spent centuries falsifying history, all in the name of peace, and look what it brought upon us!"

Hearing this, the princess dropped herself onto the seat next to Sheena. Matt, initially unsure of what to do, ended up sitting across from them. He had plenty of questions of his own, but he could tell that what was coming would have more significance to Rosalita, and chose to remain quiet.

"What specifically have you lied about?" Rosalita asked the Pokémon. She had her suspicions, but wanted - no, _needed_ \- to hear directly from Shaymin.

"The civil war," Shaymin confessed. Behind it, Rosalita's face fell upon confirmation of her thoughts. Unaware of her reaction, Shaymin kept talking, trying to keep her from prying apart its story. After centuries of lies, it wanted the truth to come out on its terms. "The truth is, the civil war was not fought between Fernando III and his brother, you. There wasn't even a brother, in fact!"

Rosalita's mind shattered like glass when she heard that. There never was a sibling that Fernando III fought? If that was untrue, what else in her life was false?

"...Everything I built my beliefs on in preparation for the throne… everything Fernando and I promised each other…" Rosalita turned as pale as someone with a tan like hers could. "It was all based on lies?!" she cried. "Why would you do such a thing?! What could possibly justify it?"

"I did it because the truth was so terrible it would have destroyed La Ciudad Dorada, you." This revelation put a check on Rosalita's emotional break. "We…" Shaymin caught itself and swiftly corrected, "I could not let this paradise die so early in its life."

Out of the corner of his eye, Matt could see Rosalita trapped in a state of shock. Since she wasn't pressing Shaymin on its statements, he decided to do it himself.

"You said 'we' couldn't let La Ciudad Dorada die. Who else was in on this with you?"

Shaymin huffed in frustration. It had hoped nobody caught its slip of the tongue, but that plan was shot to pieces. Realizing it truly had no way out, Shaymin steeled its nerves and resolved to finally come clean.

"Back then, I was still young and naive, you." It was unclear who Shaymin was addressing. "When I granted Fernando III the right to drink from the Fountain of Life, I should have foreseen what would happen, but I failed to…"

Shaymin opened its eyes and looked to the sky, the wind ruffling its fur and ears. The image of it granting Fernando III the right of succession was fresh in its memory, despite that day being centuries prior.

"The fountain's waters do grant eternal life," it continued, "but understand that such a thing comes with a price, you. It is, in fact, not a gift. It is a test, the final and most important one the king must face."

"A… test?" Rosalita haltingly wondered. She didn't fully understand where Shaymin was going, but the context was giving her a feeling of dread.

"The ceremony of succession, the path of trials against the Three Pillars, all of it is but preparation for the true test." Shaymin hung its head again. "All of those trials are meant to instill a sense of true gratitude in the heir to the throne, you. That test is to see if you are grateful enough to give up the chance for immortality and disappear into Gaia when the time comes for the next generation to take charge. That gratitude helps keep the kingdom alive."

Rosalita subconsciously wrapped her arms around herself, but remained silent. The others similarly allowed Shaymin to continue.

"Fernando III… he was the first king to be born after La Ciudad Dorada became a paradise. He did not know what life was like here before I was summoned, you. But he still expressed gratitude for what he had, so I believed it was enough. For quite a while, it was."

"W-what are you saying?" the princess asked, unsure if she truly wanted to know.

"He was a wise and just ruler for many years…" Shaymin recalled, "...until his son, Fernando IV, was born. The reality that he would one day have to cede his power and life caused him to grow increasingly obsessed with attaining true immortality. I tried to guide him back to the path of gratitude, you, I truly did. But when the day came to officially name Fernando IV as the next king, he went completely mad."

Shaymin finally turned back around to face its audience, who were simultaneously disturbed and enraptured by its tale.

"What happened then?" Matt asked.

"Fernando III imprisoned his son and I in the tower that once acted as Regice's shrine," the mythical Pokémon confessed, "but a sympathetic soldier smuggled a Gracidea to us, and I was able to escape in this form, you. Those in the court and the military chose sides, and before long, the kingdom descended into civil war."

"Th-The king turned against his own flesh and blood..." Rosalita murmured, her voice barely a whisper. Her entire body was trembling. "He abandoned everything we stand for, all for his own benefit…"

"The fighting awoke Regigigas," Shaymin continued, "and it destroyed everything until it found Fernando III. You see, Regigigas is able to manipulate Gaia. That's how it gave life to the Three Pillars, and how it regulates the flow of Gaia within the Fountain of Life's waters. Not only can it give life, though, it can also take it away, you. Since the king lost his gratitude, Regigigas found Fernando III and took him into Gaia's flow by force. It fell to those left behind, Fernando IV and I, to pick up the pieces."

~:~

Many centuries earlier, Fernando IV watched from the Sacred Hill as Regigigas headed back to its throne in the mountains. The nightmarish devastation wrought by the civil war spread out in front of him as far as the eye could see. Burning buildings, the vast majority of which were smashed apart beyond recognition, filled out virtually everything between the hill and the mountain range on the horizon. Regigigas, for all the legends about it being the kingdom's protector, displayed indifference to the destruction surrounding it. It had done its job - King Fernando III had betrayed the trust placed in him when he received the gift of the Fountain of Life, causing his kingdom to fall off the path of gratitude. From the titan's point of view, what had become of La Ciudad Dorada was of their own making. Having retaken the Gaia within the ungrateful king's body, and thus revoked the eternal life given to him, Regigigas had nothing more it needed to do.

That was not the view of the armor-clad prince watching the titan leave. Fernando IV fell to his knees as he looked out over the kingdom that had just become his. Once, seemingly so long ago, he had eagerly anticipated the day that he would inherit his father's throne. Now, though, there was nothing but despair in his eyes as they reflected the dancing tongues of fire consuming the kingdom. Floating behind him was his loyal Pokémon, a golden sword with a single blue eye who held an ornate shield in one of her cloth-like arms.

"H-how?" the new king said, devoid of any sort of hope. "How could Father do this? Aegislash, how could things come to this?!"

"You shouldn't be asking Aegislash, yes?" Shaymin told him after plodding up next to him. "This is my fault… I was troubled by parts of your father's character when I gave him the right to the throne, but I ignored it, yes…"

"You trusted Father, Shaymin. We all did, and we were all just as wrong." Fernando IV shook his head in dismay. "None of us did anything before it was too late, and look what has become of us! La Ciudad Dorada is finished! When the people learn what their king did, their faith in our family will be broken! They'll fight over which path is correct, and this conflict will never end!"

"We must give them something to feel gratitude for once again, yes?" Shaymin suggested, sagely nodding. "Then they will be at peace again."

"It is fortunate that the truth of this played out behind closed doors…" Even as he spoke to Shaymin, Fernando IV didn't look at it. "We must never let the people know what really took place. I-It will be…"

Fernando IV interrupted himself, wrestling internally with what he wanted to say. His heart told him that to cross the line he was treading was wrong, that it would take he and his budding reign past a point of no return. But in his mind, he felt Shaymin was right. The people needed something to believe in, so that he could lead them back into peace. His conflicting ideas forced him to glance over his shoulder, at the golden statue that until a short while prior had been his father. Further back lay the unconscious form of the Steelix that once served the deceased king.

Finally, he took a deep breath and committed himself to what he felt he had to do. "It will be the position of my government that this war was the fault of the king's brother, his top advisor, who was heretofore unknown to the public."

"Do you understand the magnitude of what you are saying?" Shaymin gravely questioned.

"I'm sure… yes, I'm sure. I have to do this." Fernando IV's voice was shaky, betraying just how unconfident he really was. "We will tell them that the king had a brother who betrayed him to try and usurp the throne. And so they will not live in fear of Regigigas, we'll say that it was that betrayal of gratitude that brought Regigigas's judgment, not its need to take Father's life. They… they will think it was giving you their gratitude that ended the war. That your Golden Sky Bouquet showed Regigigas it no longer needed to punish us."

"That is technically true, yes?" Shaymin pointed out. "You had them help me use it so we could defeat your father and Mega Steelix, even if they didn't know it."

"It will be difficult, but it will bring peace back to our land." Fernando IV was nowhere near as certain of this as he tried to sound. His arms trembled as he took Shaymin into them, while his Aegislash tucked herself behind her shield. "I will need the aid of the full court in this endeavor… that includes you, Shaymin."

"I am the one who allowed this to happen, yes…" Shaymin turned away from the devastation. "I have to make this place peaceful again… n-no matter what it takes, yes…"

Upon hearing its agreement with his plan, Fernando IV hugged the mythical Pokémon. His armor was cold and uncomfortable against its body, but it didn't even flinch.

~:~

"So that's what we did, you. Fernando IV and I changed history, and for all the time since then, I've done my best to keep up the facade."

With its tale at an end, Shaymin turned back to its audience, unsure of what sort of reactions to expect. Sheena was staring at it intently, clearly enraptured by its recollection of history. Matt had his eyes closed, seemingly lost in thought. Rosalita, meanwhile, was still shaking with her arms wrapped around herself.

"Everything I believed was a lie," the princess repeated, her distress laid bare by her voice.

Having everything out in the open at long last gave Shaymin the strength to tackle the matter head-on. It floated over to Rosalita so it could address her directly.

"You are different, Rosalita," it told her. Before continuing, it pawed at an itch in its right ear. "All your ancestors were very private, you. Even much of your own parents' lives were out of the public eye. But you, you have always lived as one with the people. You know them and their lives on a personal level, you." Shaymin jumped onto Rosalita's lap. "My lies were meant to preserve peace, but they failed. I see that now. Together, we can fix it, you."

Rosalita initially remained silent, overwhelmed by the reality of the situation. When she finally did speak, it was in a hushed, weary tone.

"You are demanding too much from me, Shaymin… how can anyone shoulder all this? You want me to undo what half a millenium's worth of lies you and my ancestor did to our people. You expect me to reveal all this and still be able to lead them. And that comes after stopping my brother, who thinks Regigigas is nothing more than a simple protector _because_ of those lies! I ask you again, _how_ can you expect anyone to shoulder this responsibility?"

"I don't expect _anyone_ to do it," Shaymin replied. "I expect _you_. Because when I looked into your heart, I saw a person with both the strength and grace needed. I resolved to never repeat my mistake with Fernando III, you. And you are the one who is capable of saving this land."

"But still-"

Rosalita's protestation got cut off when Sheena put a hand on the princess's shoulder.

"You don't have to do it alone," the priestess reassured her, smiling. "Rely on us."

"That's right, Rosa!" Eleanor called from the front of the vehicle. Evidently, she had been listening the whole time. "You can count on us!"

"Well, it looks like I've inherited Sutter's work after all," Matt added. "I can't turn my back on you now, Rosalita. Not after all that's happened."

"Everyone…" Rosalita's despair was turning into an emotional sense of hope that things could turn out well. "There is no way for me to express the gratitude I have for your support."

"That's just fine by itself," Matt said. "I do have one last thing I want cleared up, though. Shaymin, why did Fernando VI seek out my grandfather? Why was he looking for an overseer?"

Compared to what it had just confessed, Matt's question was easy for Shaymin to answer. "Truth be told, this is not the first time an heir has discovered what happened, you. Fernando VI found inconsistencies in the genealogy of the House of Fernando. They were oversights we missed while planning the coverup. He did not go to his father with his concerns, though, he went to me. I panicked and told him the truth, you. I managed to convince him to help me keep it all quiet… it was not time for the truth to come out."

"So that's it…" Matt uttered, sinking back in his seat. "Fernando's mad plans, the deaths of Sutter and the king and queen… it all comes back to the lie you and Fernando IV concocted."

"You have done the people of La Ciudad Dorada a grave disservice with your lies, Shaymin," Rosalita scolded it. "To say nothing of the harm you've done to outsiders like Professor Chiaki and his family."

"I know, and I'm sorry." Shaymin's great remorse genuinely surprised Matt, leaving him to stare at the mythical Pokémon. It wasn't that he thought Shaymin expressing such emotions was impossible, he just hadn't expected it. "It is time for the truth to be revealed to the people. I understand now, you. I want to fix what we did."

Rosalita felt her heart torn in much the same way her ancestor Fernando IV's had been. Naturally, she was upset. How could she not be, having found out just how much of what she believed was built on lies? She hadn't just been misled herself, but the kingdom she so loved had been laboring under the same misinformation for centuries. But that she loved La Ciudad Dorada was exactly the point. She couldn't allow her people to be fooled any longer, not when she'd experienced the consequences of all the lying firsthand with her brother.

"There is going to be a lot of hard work to be done, but…" Rosalita drew a deep breath. "I'm ready. I won't be afraid anymore. No more lies. We will fight for peace and I will seize it with my own hands."

-:-

Sighing in irritation, Cassy looked at her phone to check the time.

 _"Maybe I did it too soon,"_ she wordlessly mused. Matt's warning had prompted her to alert the palace guards as soon as she hung up with him, but she'd been waiting in the garage with a half-dozen of the staff-wielding soldiers for so long that she was growing nervous. _"If they don't show up soon, I might end up in trouble…"_

Cassy heard the clanking of the guards' weapons behind her, further fueling her agitation. She grew tense as she reached toward Swellow's Poké Ball, anticipating at any time to need to fight them.

Just then, however, a loud, metallic creaking echoed through the garage. It was the shutter at the chamber's far end rising open. The guards braced themselves, readying both their staves and the clockwork Poké Balls attached to their armor for their mission.

Before the shutter was even all the way up, Eleanor drove the group into the garage. Their vehicle coasted to a stop and Rosalita jumped off, only to be promptly encircled by the guards. She was surprised to only see six. All the way back, after concocting her plan, she'd expected to face far more.

"Princess Rosalita, you are under arrest," the captain of the guards declared, stepping forward. Behind him, the others crossed their staves, closing the space between them. "You are charged with the murder of King Fernando VII and Queen Sophia."

"I am pleased to see your lack of hesitation, Captain Edrei, but I am innocent," she countered. "The killer is my brother, not me."

"If you think we will accept that with no evidence, you're mistaken." Edrei looked over his shoulder. "Detain h-"

"I have evidence," Rosalita interrupted, giving the guards pause. She turned back to her own allies and said, "After all, Matt, you've been recording everything, haven't you?"

Matt hadn't even thought about it until Rosalita said so, but she was right. He had his laptop recording everything that had taken place - including Fernando's confession. While he fetched the computer and searched for the relevant footage, though, Cassy saw the heavily bandaged left side of his head.

"What did he do to you?!" she shrieked, grabbing the sides of her face in horror. "He hurt you, didn't he?!"

"Cassy, I appreciate the concern, but please, not now!" Matt's protest didn't soothe Cassy's anger at all, but there was no time to address it. He'd found the portion of video he was looking for. After maxing out the laptop's volume, he turned it toward the guards and said, "Watch and listen."

With the tap of a key, the footage from the Golden City of Rosalita and Fernando's confrontation began replaying.

 _"You killed Mother and Father! Professor Chiaki too! You're in no position to moralize to others when you've already gone too far!"_

 _"That right there is why you are not worthy of the throne despite your power. I… I did kill them. I am weak, and I did what I was capable of. What you fail to grasp is that... nobody is more precious than what we must protect. We are insignificant in the bigger picture of things, and that is why the kingdom must be protected no matter the cost. My life has made that very clear to me."_

Murmuring arose among the guards. The video shown to them certainly did depict what Rosalita claimed it did. Yet, with everything that was taking place, it was hard for them to accept it.

"H-How do we know that is not faked?" one of the female guards stammered. "You could have-"

"It's real because _I_ witnessed it, you!" Shaymin boomed, perching on the edge of the vehicle. While the guards all gasped at its presence, Eleanor and Sheena shared a glance between themselves, both mentally noting the unneeded flair in Shaymin's entrance.

"Shaymin?!" The mythical Pokémon's appearance was the last thing Edrei expected. "But then, if you are here, that means…"

"Captain," one of the men in his service addressed him, "if what Rosalita claims is true, that means Minister Raul and his men…"

"So _that's_ how Fernando got the skyship running," Rosalita interrupted in disgust. "Captain, summon Minister Raul to the palace's defense center. The rest of you, come with me."

"But we still do not know what's really going on," another guard protested.

"Follow me," Rosalita replied, "and you will."

-:-

Lingote Palace's defense center was a dark, barely furnished room deep within the castle. All it had within it was a long table, a few chairs, and a pedestal surrounded by levers. What light existed in the spacious chamber filtered from lamps lining the walls.

When Rosalita arrived with Matt, Eleanor, Sheena, Cassy, Shaymin and the guards, Edrei and Raul were already there. She didn't know how the pair had beaten them to their destination, but given everything else going on, she didn't have much time to think about it.

"Princess," Raul addressed her. He had his hands crossed behind his back, hiding his nervous state as best he could. When the captain ran into him and ordered him along to the defense chamber, he knew _something_ significant was taking place.

"Defense Minister," Rosalita coldly replied.

As Rosalita walked past him, Raul felt a chill run down his spine. He knew better than to ask why the guards were following her commands. _"Clearly, if they aren't detaining her, she made some sort of case to show her innocence,"_ he surmised.

Matt's group and the guards stood back and watched as Rosalita approached the pedestal and began manipulating the levers and switches. Raul squinted at her in confusion as she worked. He knew the purpose of the systems she was activating, but that knowledge was exactly why her actions so perplexed him. Had things actually gotten so bad that what she was doing was necessary?

"Princess, if I may…" He could not stop himself from questioning her. There was a fear growing in his heart that he needed to try and defuse. "Why are you activating the defense system?"

"Witness the truth for yourself," she answered, remaining focused like a laser on her efforts.

After Rosalita flipped a few more switches, that truth was finally revealed to those who didn't already know. A giant projection screen overlooking the chamber flickered to life, and although its image was fouled by occasional bursts of static, what it showed was unmistakable.

It showed the royal family's skyship sailing over the desert toward La Ciudad Dorada. The fleet of Pokémon under Fernando's control were ahead of it, but they largely escaped notice thanks to the fact that Regigigas, enslaved by the armor, was marching alongside the ship.

When this sight met his eyes, Raul felt his body go so stiff that he almost thought he had died. It was worse than he'd feared. Rosalita's actions had led him to think Regigigas was awake, but nothing else. The skyship flying alongside Regigigas and not being attacked could only mean one thing, and he knew it instantly.

"Yes, Minister Raul…" Rosalita glared at him from the corner of her eye. "My brother flew the skyship to the Golden City and subjugated Regigigas to his will using special armor. Who could have helped him do that, I wonder?"

"I did not know what he was planning, I swear!" Raul wasn't lying, but the venom in Rosalita's words rattled him.

"If you wish to keep your position, you best tell me everything you aided him with," she warned the elderly man.

"There really is not that much to say." When Rosalita put her hands on her hips and leered at him, Raul defensively put his hands up. "I swear it! Ask any of my subordinates! Fernando asked us to prepare the skyship so he could launch it, load some cargo onto it and install the control system for the military's Pokémon!"

"That cargo must have been the armor he used to control Regigigas," the princess deduced, turning away in thought. "How do you justify installing the military command system? You must have known he would use it."

"He said those Pokémon with our control collars were stolen by poachers, and he was going to regain custody of them."

"He lied to you," Rosalita flatly said before sighing. "Fernando gave those Pokémon to the poachers himself. It was all so he could turn them into his slaves at the critical moment."

"To think that the Count would do all of this…" Edrei mused, having listened to the entire conversation. "But why? What is his endgame? He said he wants to protect the kingdom, but how does _this_ even come close to accomplishing that?"

"My brother wishes to force me to relinquish my claim to the throne," Rosalita revealed to Raul and the guards, "and if that fails, he intends to depose me by force." She pointed back toward the immense projection hanging over them and added, "He has completely lost his mind. You can see that for yourselves."

"I'd call that an understatement," Raul said, staring at the image of the oncoming Regigigas. "We were all manipulated so easily…"

"So that is your answer for why I am doing this." Rosalita pivoted back to the pedestal, which was projecting a control panel similar to the ones used by the vehicles the group had traveled in. When she held her hands over it, a number of pillar-like objects illuminated over the panel.

This caught Eleanor's attention, and she leaned in to get a closer look. "Rosa, what's that thing you're using?" she asked.

"La Ciudad Dorada's defense mechanism," the princess replied. She spread the palms of her hands over the projection, making it glow brighter in response. "Allow me to explain. As I told you all earlier, after the civil war we largely withdrew our population to La Ciudad Dorada's current borders. We knew we had to protect ourselves, but the leaders of the time…" Rosalita paused, trying to mentally reconcile the lies she had been taught with the reality she now knew. "The leaders of the time, as a gesture of peace, did not want to take a typical approach to defense. They commissioned the greatest Arcane Scientists of the time to develop a new concept, and this device was the result. The city's outer rim was mechanized, allowing us to rearrange the towers dotting it into a defensive wall we can easily put up or take down depending upon our needs."

"Just when I think I've seen everything, you surprise me again, Rosa." Eleanor's demeanor soon darkened, and she asked, "Will it be enough to stop Regigigas?"

Rosalita frowned and lowered her head, allowing her hair to hide her eyes. "It will at least buy us some time…" she admitted.

-:-

After Cassy parted with her, Laura had initially stayed in Dorada Market. Her worry over the situation eventually won out over her desire to stay out of it, so she decided to go up the Sacred Hill and try to find out what was going on. Cassy was nowhere to be found when she arrived, but at the peak of the hill, she still found her answer when she saw Regigigas in the distance. As she observed the titan's relentless march, one of her hands instinctively went to Swampert's Poké Ball while she clasped her Key Stone with the other.

"This isn't looking good, buddy," she said to her Pokémon. "We might get forced out of retirement for this one…"

"Um… excuse me?"

Much like how she had practically snuck up on Cassy earlier, it was Laura's turn to be surprised by someone approaching her. The short young man with messy green hair had been on the Sacred Hill before she arrived, but she never noticed him.

"Yikes, you really snuck up on me," she said to him, laughing to play off her shock. "What's up?"

"F-forgive me, but you're Laura, right? The winner of the Hoenn League from five years ago?"

Laura sighed. She'd been found out for the second time that day.

"Oh, I apologize!" the boy rushed to say. "I know you turned away from the spotlight. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone, I promise."

"It's alright, kid," she assured him. "Nice to meet you."

The boy took Laura's hand and gave her a surprisingly vigorous handshake. "I'm Wally, from Petalburg City. It's an honor to meet you."

"I'm sure it is," Laura replied, half-sarcastically. Her eyes wandered to the hand-carved wooden pendant he was wearing, which had a Key Stone like hers embedded in it. "It's impressive you've got a Key Stone."

"Yeah, it's for my Gallade." Evidently, talking about Pokémon helped Wally's confidence, which Laura made a mental note of. "He's my first and most trusted partner."

"I hope you'll let me meet him someday. So, what can I do for you, Wally? Are you looking for Alliance Battle partners too?"

"I traveled here to try one, but…" Wally shrunk back and pointed off to the horizon, at Regigigas. "I'm worried about what Regigigas is doing. When I saw you, I hoped you could do someth-"

Wally and Laura's conversation was abruptly interrupted by the sound of a siren piercing the air. Both of them jumped and their hands shot to their respective Poké Balls.

"You're sharp," Laura complimented her new friend.

"I can say the same to you," he replied.

As the sirens continued blaring, the mechanisms built beneath the edges of La Ciudad Dorada stirred to life. A great shaking radiated through the ground, and the towers beyond the city limits slowly began to move. The Doradan citizens were already emptying out of their homes; they had been told by their leaders to evacuate to the Sacred Hill if the sirens ever sounded, but the complete and utter surprise that such a day actually came left them in an initial state of confusion.

Meanwhile, up on the Sacred Hill, Laura and Wally stood side-by-side as the scene of escalating chaos played out before them.

"I was hoping you would be able to do something, Miss Champion," Wally finally finished.

"Just call me Laura. And don't worry, I've got your back, Wally. I'll watch out for you."

-:-

After placing Regigigas under his control, Fernando retreated to the skyship's bridge for the trip back home. He had little to do, as the ship's autopilot did all the work for him. That left him with time to ponder what he was doing and what would come next.

 _"Rosalita, I do not know why you can't see that my actions are right."_ It pained Fernando to go against his beloved sister, but to him, she was the one making the mistake. _"You are the stronger of us, but you use that strength to stand against protecting our home… how could you?"_

The count clenched his teeth behind an angry scowl. At that point, his eyes wandered to a projection of La Ciudad Dorada as he flew toward it. He shot up straight in the pilot's chair when he saw the walls closing around the city. It was a sight that made a terrible realization sink into his mind.

Without hesitation, he grabbed the transmitter for the skyship's radio.

-:-

Rosalita carefully worked the controls for the towers with Shaymin floating at her side and Matt, Eleanor, Sheena, Cassy, Raul and the guards watching. Her concentration and determination helped her effortlessly glide her hands over the shimmering hologram, every motion moving the city's shields closer to completion.

The relative silence in the room was broken by an unexpected signal. A new window popped up over the giant projection, bearing the words 'incoming transmission.'

"Incoming transmission?" Rosalita said in surprise. "From where?"

"It's the skyship…" Raul stepped forth and ominously informed her. "Your brother."

The fact that her brother was reaching out to her melted some of the hardened exterior Rosalita had put on since her arrival at Lingote Palace. "How do I answer it?" she asked Raul.

"Just pick up the radio on the side of the control panel and press the button. That will establish the link, and you press it again when you wish to speak."

"Much obliged." Rosalita promptly followed the elderly man's instruction, plucking the transmitter from its holder and pressing the button on its side. Fernando appeared in the projection, and when she saw his face, she gasped.

She had been expecting intense fury from him, but she was greeted instead by the image of her brother seemingly fighting back tears.

"How could you, Rosalita?" he asked her, his voice weak. "I see you putting up the walls around the city… I was prepared for you to despise me. But you see me as a threat to our home? How could you ever do that when you know all I've ever desired is to protect it?"

Rosalita found herself rattled by her brother's state. "I hate what you are doing, but I could never hate _you_... you know that." The princess averted her eyes, unable to keep looking at him. "Fernando, you have to stop this. There is no other option. You are making yourself the exact threat you want to protect our home from!"

"And you should know that my actions and I are one. If I were to stop, I may as well cease to exist." Rosalita sharply inhaled in horror when Fernando said this, but he ignored her reaction. "If you despise my purpose, you despise me."

"Please, Fernando, listen to me," Rosalita pleaded. She knew she was running out of ways to try reasoning with him. "There's something you do not know. I just learned it myself."

"What is it?" Fernando asked her.

"Everything we were taught about the civil war was a lie." Next to Rosalita, Shaymin lowered its head in shame. Revealing the truth to the princess had been hard enough, but it had never thought about just how difficult telling Fernando would be. Unable to bring itself to speak, it allowed Rosalita to continue. "You have to listen to me! Regigigas is not what you think it is. You are going down a path leading to nothing but ruin, Fernando. Please…"

"So you are telling me Father and Mother lied to us…" the count said bitterly.

"No, that's not it!" Rosalita cried out. "Father and Mother did not know either!"

"But Shaymin surely did." When Fernando voiced his realization, his words cut through both his sister and the mythical Pokémon like a knife. "Shaymin lives forever. It's been here since the birth of La Ciudad Dorada… and lying to generations of our family all the while."

"Fernando, listen to me! Please!" With no other options left, Rosalita hoped against hope that she would somehow be able to get through to him. "You won't come back from this!"

"It doesn't matter," Fernando coldly replied. "Shaymin and our ancestors have not acted in the best interests of our home. I am… I am the only one who can right this wrong. If you will stand against me even knowing that, then there is nothing more to be said. Farewell."

Rosalita opened her mouth to plead further, but Fernando disconnected the transmission and vanished from the projection before any words could come out. She hung her head, and for several tense, uncomfortable moments, nearly everyone else in the room was sure she was about to start weeping. That mistaken impression left them all stunned when she pivoted on her heel and approached Edrei with a raging inferno burning in her eyes.

"This will have to do for now," she told the captain as she took his staff. She then turned to Matt, Eleanor, Sheena and Cassy, ordering them, "Kneel before me."

Eleanor and Sheena, understanding what was taking place, immediately dropped to one knee. It didn't register in Matt's mind right away, so when Cassy realized what Rosalita was doing, she jabbed him in the side with her elbow.

"You're supposed to kneel when the queen tells you to," she whispered.

"Oh… _oh_ ," he said, the reality of the situation dawning on him.

Matt and Cassy acceded to Rosalita's command, and Rosalita raised the staff over the four tourists. Before she could go any further, though, Raul stopped her by gently gripping her arm.

"Princess," he said, "You've not been formally coronated yet. I understand why you're doing this, but you don't have the authority."

"Who _does_ have the authority right now?" Rosalita answered back. "Father and Mother are not here. Fernando has gone mad. I am the only one with any rightful claim at all to do this."

Raul hesitated, but before long, he realized the truth in Rosalita's words and released her from his grip. "I suppose that is true," he admitted, before bowing in deference to her and adding, "Please forgive my insolence."

"You are forgiven. Now…" Turning her attention back to her allies, Rosalita touched each of their shoulders with the staff, and as she did so she recited, "Matt Chiaki. Cassy Natsuka. Eleanor Laplace. Sheena Carnet. In the service of La Ciudad Dorada, and of the royal blood that flows through me, I hereby name you my knights. Take this oath and serve in the name of peace. _Gratia cantantes aeternum_."

Sheena and Eleanor were the first to repeat the oath, much like they had been the first to kneel. Likewise, Cassy had to push Matt, who was too stunned by what was taking place, to do so before taking it herself. Despite the disorganization, Rosalita was satisfied with the makeshift ceremony and returned the captain's staff to its owner.

"Raul," she addressed her advisor, "summon the other members of the court and inform them of what is facing our realm."

"Right away, my lady," Raul replied before scurrying out of the room.

"Now, Captain…" Edrei stood firmly at attention when Rosalita spoke to him. "Accompany me to the armory. For now, the rest of you, go outside and fortify the palace with your Pokémon." Turning to Matt, Eleanor, Sheena and Cassy, she added, "My knights, I wish for you to go with them and wait for me."

-:-

If Laura and Wally had stayed on the Sacred Hill just a while longer, they would have gotten to see an impressive array of Pokémon. Once the guards made it to the scorched garden in front of Lingote Palace, they deployed all of the clockwork Poké Balls in their possession. Matt, Cassy, Eleanor and Sheena stood and watched as the castle's defenders were summoned forth.

The numerous Bronzong that appeared didn't surprise them. After all, they'd already seen one, not to mention the way the guards' armor was based off the bronze bell Pokémon. The Bronzong were dwarfed, however, by the four towering Golurk called out behind them. Several colorful, single-eyed Sigilyph appeared and hovered over the shoulders of the Golurk, while numerous Escavalier and Bisharp positioned themselves between the earthy automatons and readied their weapons for battle.

"I've never seen some of these Pokémon in person before," Matt marveled to his friends. "Golurk? Sigilyph? I've read about them, but this is the first time I'm seeing them in the flesh. I only wish it was under better circumstances…"

"It's unfortunate, but I must agree…" Sheena said, casting her gaze over the scene of chaos unfolding before them. The towers were in place to form the wall, but Regigigas and the skyship could still be seen steadily, relentlessly advancing. The citizens and tourists were evacuating the town down below, gathering in Dorada Market around the Sacred Hill.

"What a disgrace," Eleanor bitterly added, clenching her fist in front of her face. "I just wanted a nice vacation, and it's ruined. Everything's ruined."

"I don't think you should be concerned about your vacation right now," Cassy said to the engineer. "Be more worried about getting out of this in one piece."

"That is not going to happen. I won't let it."

Matt and the others turned around to see Rosalita passing between her guards and their Pokémon. Shaymin was floating at her side, and Edrei followed closely behind her. Much to their surprise, she'd traded her salvaged clothes for a full suit of armor.

"Wow, Rosa," Eleanor complimented, looking her over. " _Nice_."

"Thank you, Eleanor," the princess replied before addressing the entire group. "As I said, I will let no harm come to you. Fernando IV fought against his own father in order to protect the kingdom and his subjects. I understand now that I must follow in his footsteps, to protect everyone and everything I hold dear. But I cannot do it alone, and that is why I have inducted you four into my service."

"I think I speak for us all when I say we are ready."

Sheena didn't notice Matt close his fist and turn away when she made her declaration. Rosalita did, however, and immediately turned her attention to him.

"Matt, are you alright?" she asked, some of her gentle demeanor returning.

"I-I'm scared, I won't lie." He gestured to his bandage-covered face and torso. "Look what already happened to me. But… at the same time…" Matt reached into his bag and retrieved a small object he kept hidden in his closed hand, then repeated, "At the same time, this would have been my responsibility even if Fernando never set out on this crusade. It's fitting, really… in the end I've inherited Sutter's work after all."

Matt finally opened his hand, revealing the object to be a golden pin. It depicted a space shuttle, framed by a majestic pair of wings on its sides and a delta symbol beneath it. He affixed the insignia to his coat and then continued speaking.

"This is what my grandfather would have wanted," he said, trying to steel his nerves. "Helping you defeat Fernando and save your home… that's the closure I came here to find."

"I am happy to have you on board," Rosalita affirmed with a smile. "Now, listen, all of you. This is my plan. I am going to go face Fernando directly, and Matt, I want you and Eleanor to come with me."

"Wait, you want me?" Caught thoroughly by surprise, Eleanor pointed questioningly at herself. "What can I do?"

"It is something _only_ you can do, Eleanor," Rosalita assured her, placing a hand on Eleanor's shoulder. "Minister Raul mentioned earlier that the control system for the collars on Fernando's Pokémon was installed in the skyship. We must assume that the armor he's manipulating Regigigas with is operated through the same mechanism. That is where you come in. We will board the ship with the aid of Reyes and Sally, and then while Matt and I distract Fernando, you enter the bridge, break into the control system and shut it down. With your skills, I know I can place my faith in you."

Stunned, and very well aware of the magnitude of the situation, Eleanor simply replied with, "I've got it."

"What about Cassy and I?" Sheena asked the princess. Cassy simply stood next to her and watched in silence.

"You two have a very important role as well." Before continuing, Rosalita took four of her Doradan Poké Balls off her armor and opened them, calling forth her Leavanny, Bibarel, Luxray and Shiftry. "Sheena, I am entrusting you and Cassy with helping to protect my people. Everyone within these walls, be they a resident or a visitor, is my responsibility. I am loaning you my Pokémon with this request: go down the Sacred Hill and assist in protecting the evacuees from Fernando's invasion."

"That is doable," Cassy said. She released Swellow from his ball, then put her hand on her chin and mused, "I think I may know someone who can help us here."

"If you do, please seek their aid," Rosalita urged Matt's classmate. "The more people we have fighting against Fernando's army, the better."

"Then you may as well accept my assistance, too," Eleanor volunteered. She plucked all three of her own Poké Balls from her skirt and opened them, releasing Persian, Litwick and Rotom in flashes of light. "Persian can fight, but please keep Litwick and Rotom safe," she asked Rosalita.

"That is a request I can fulfill," the princess answered. Turning back to her guards, she directed them, "Take Litwick and Rotom into the palace and shield them from harm."

Eleanor hugged her Pokémon, but they hesitated to part from her. "It's fine, you guys. It really is. Please keep yourselves safe."

While Litwick and Rotom reluctantly separated from their trainer and passed through the line of guards, Rosalita was approached by the guards' leader.

"My lady, I must ask you one more time if you are certain about doing this."

"There is nothing I have ever been more certain of in my life, Captain," she replied.

"Then I pledge to assist you by serving at your side as well. Pidgeot, come forward!"

Edrei opened a pouch attached to his waist, fetching a clockwork Poké Ball of his own. Inside the sphere was a Pidgeot, who spread her wings and shrilled when she materialized. Her trainer wasn't done after calling on her, though. He pointed his left hand toward the dark sky and turned his palm toward himself, revealing that he had a Key Stone set in the back of his gauntlet.

"Pidgeot, Mega Evolve!"

Light shot out of the Key Stone when Edrei touched it, arcing through the air and joining with the light given off by the Mega Stone attached to a band on her leg. As she was wrapped in the glow, her crest lengthened, turning yellow and red in the process. Her wings, meanwhile, grew even more majestic, with their tips taking on a blue shade. She grew by nearly three full feet overall by the time she broke out of her gleaming cocoon.

"A Mega Pidgeot…" Sheena said in awe.

"We will be better off having the aid of you and Pidgeot, Captain. I thank you." Rosalita made her way to the forefront of the gathering and turned to address all of her allies. "I thank all of you for your support. This is going to be a difficult day, one of the most difficult this kingdom has faced in centuries. But I do not feel fear, not anymore. We will fight against the darkness encroaching on our realm and we will drive it back! We will destroy it!" The princess balled her hand up into a fist to contain the adrenaline flowing through her body. "And I will reach into that darkness and pull my brother out of it! I promise you, the sun will shine on La Ciudad Dorada again, and together, we will reach that glorious peace!"

The army of guards broke into a cheer thanks to their soon-to-be queen's impromptu speech. Rosalita looked them over one last time before turning and throwing the clockwork ball containing Reyes. As soon as her Staraptor appeared, she dashed towards him and leaped onto his back, then nodded to Matt. Matt understood what the signal meant, and wasted no time in releasing Sally from her Poké Ball. He climbed onto her back and extended his hand to Eleanor, helping her up.

"To reach a peace we can all feel gratitude for…" Rosalita cried, "...to battle!"

With that, Reyes and Sally lifted off the Sacred Hill, Shaymin and Pidgeot alongside them. Sheena, Cassy and the guards watched as they flew away from Lingote Palace and toward Fernando. To his army. To the skyship. And of course, to the enslaved titan, Regigigas.

Every beat of Sally and Reyes's wings brought them and their human allies closer to their shared destiny. And, for the second time in La Ciudad Dorada's history, the wind beneath their wings brought civil war to the isolated city.

 **END of CHAPTER 7**


	9. Civil War

Well, this is it, the climax. Time to throw everything out there.

As mentioned before, the character Door and her Audino, Knives, are from Electric Sheep by Minty and used with permission. I also want to thank Ren once more for her help with Laura, including a passage involving Laura and Swampert near the end of this chapter.

-:-

 **CHAPTER 8:** Civil War

-:-

Having gone down the Sacred Hill, Laura and Wally found themselves in a scene that bordered on chaos. Dorada Market was packed full of both residents and tourists, all hurriedly making their way towards the hill due to the evacuation. Laura was sure she'd lose Wally in the confusion, so she latched tightly onto his hand before spiriting him through the crowd.

"Miss Champion!" the diminutive young man called out to her. "What are we going to do?"

"I'm still working on it, kid!" she hurriedly replied.

Just as the pair of trainers from Hoenn broke through the front of the horde, Laura could hear them begin murmuring about something in the sky. When she and Wally saw many of the evacuees pointing upward, they turned their eyes to the sky as well.

"Wow…" Wally said in awe, clutching his pendant as he watched Sally, Reyes, Shaymin and Mega Pidgeot fly overhead. "Miss Champion, aren't those…"

"A Mega Pidgeot would be cool enough, but a real life Shaymin in the flesh?" Laura couldn't take her eyes off them. "That's a sight for sore eyes, alright. And they're heading straight for Regigigas?"

Right then, Laura heard a voice calling to her from behind. It was faint, largely drowned out by the din of the crowd, but she still recognized it.

"Laura! Laura, this time _I'm_ talking to _you_!"

Laura turned just in time to see Cassy emerge and approach her. While Matt's classmate doubled over to catch her breath, Sheena arrived, joining her alongside Swellow, Elena, Leonel, Deivi, Isabel, and Eleanor's Persian.

"Yo," Laura greeted her new acquaintance. "I didn't know you had such a gang with you. Swellow alone was pretty impressive."

"They aren't…"

Cassy was struggling to catch her breath, so Sheena tried to help her finish.

"I think my friend is trying to say that these aren't all her Pokémon. We're borrowing them."

Cassy recovered enough to straighten up. "That's right, but they won't be enough for this. We need help."

"That goes without saying." Laura put her hand on her hip. She was still irritated over the disruption in her vacation plans, but she could see that her concerns were not of great importance at the time. "Nobody's gonna beat Regigigas alone, that's for sure."

"No, Regigigas is what Matt is dealing with," Cassy corrected her. "There are more Pokémon coming… we have to protect the civilians from them."

"Alright," Laura said, turning to face the city. "Alright, I got it. That buddy of yours really did get us in trouble after all, huh?"

"You could say that again," Cassy sighed.

"No problem, though. We've got this." Lowering her gaze to settle on Wally, Laura asked him, "You ready to go, kid?"

Much to her surprise, Wally already had his Poké Ball at the ready. He responded to her question with a determined look and a firm mod, making her laugh.

"I think I had the wrong impression of you, Wally," she teased him, before getting her own Poké Ball out. "Alright, buddy, it's time to go!" she cried as she threw it.

"Come on, Gallade!" Wally added, tossing his sphere.

Swampert and Gallade materialized next to each other, each sporting their respective Mega Stones on accessories matching those worn by their trainers. They shared a look of mutual respect between themselves, eager to see how they would fare compared to each other.

"Time to go beyond the limits, buddy!" Laura called out, grabbing her necklace to activate the Key Stone. "Nobody tells us what we can and can't do! When they try to keep us down, we pierce into the heavens above, 'cause that's just how we roll! Mega Evolve!"

"I don't have a speech prepared, but please don't underestimate me!" Wally followed up, mimicking Laura's motion. "Gallade, my friend, Mega Evolve!"

Twin streams of light burst from Laura and Wally's respective Key Stones, arcing through the air and connecting to the Mega Stones worn by Swampert and Gallade. They were wrapped in the bright glow, each undergoing a powerful metamorphosis. Swampert's transformation was the more dramatic of the two; as his upper body and arms swelled with newfound muscle mass, so much so that his tiny legs could no longer fully support him and he had to hunch forward. His fins darkened and grew sharper, while his gills turned orange and became dramatically more pointed.

While Gallade's physical changes were less prominent than Swampert's, they were still quite noticeable. His limbs and torso turned white, while the blades on his arms sharpened and took on a red hue. The crest on his head curved, and two cape-like growths sprouted from his back, giving him the appearance of a noble hero from a fairy tale.

Once their respective transformations were complete, Swampert and Gallade burst out of their gleaming cocoons. Swampert reared back as far as he could and roared, while Gallade struck a pose with his hands on his waist, allowing his 'cape' to flutter behind him. Swellow, Persian and Leonel lined up to Swampert's right flank, and Elena, Deivi and Isabel assembled on Gallade's left.

As the one person who wasn't contributing any Pokémon to the effort, Sheena decided to take what action she could. She turned to face the crowd of citizens and tourists behind her, many of whom had started to take notice of the Pokémon lining up to protect them.

"Focus," she said to herself, taking a deep breath. She then brought her hands together, closed her eyes, and softly chanted, "Transcend the confines of time and space."

As she visualized the minds of the people around her, Sheena quickly came to realize that the task was bigger than she imagined. Nevertheless, she knew she had to persevere. She clasped her hands together even more tightly, pushing her power to its limit.

 _"All of you are in grave danger,"_ she wordlessly communicated to the horde. _"Those of you who are able and willing, please step forward and join us in defending La Ciudad Dorada and its people!"_

-:-

The air was thick with tension as Sally, Reyes, Pidgeot and Shaymin pressed onward, the former two carrying Matt, Eleanor and Rosalita toward Regigigas and the skyship. Even though both were easily visible to the princess and her knights, they hadn't yet encountered any resistance. Of course, all three allies knew that it was only a matter of time before Fernando put up an offense against them.

 _"You will not get away with this, Fernando,"_ Rosalita thought, clutching onto her mount while her hair billowed in the wind. _"You are coming home with me even if I have to drag you with my own two hands."_

All of a sudden, both Sally and Reyes noticed something below them out of the corners of their eyes. The two flying Pokémon reared out of the way just as Fernando's giant Kommo-o came flying past them into the sky, his head glowing with a metallic sheen. After his Iron Head missed, Shaymin flung an Air Slash into him, knocking him back down.

"Whoa!" Eleanor cried out, tightening her hold around Matt's body. "Where'd that come from?"

Rosalita and Matt peered downward. They had been approaching the city's wall, but before they reached it, Probopass perched herself atop the barrier. Her eyes were glowing with green light as she manipulated the other brainwashed Pokémon with Telekinesis.

"It is coming from right there," Rosalita bitterly answered while pointing at Probopass, who sent Roserade up toward them before any of the three could speak further. The Grass-and-Poison-type started to gather energy for a Hyper Beam, but before she could fire it, Rosalita boomed, "Reyes, Brave Bird!"

The armor-clad princess held on to her Staraptor for dear life as he dove at Roserade, his body surrounded by a blue aura. He drove himself straight into the flower Pokémon at tremendous speed, dispelling her Hyper Beam and knocking her away with ease. Probopass caught Roserade with Telekinesis, though, affording her the chance to recover.

Quickly composing herself, Roserade pointed her bouquet arms at her foes and launched bursts of purple sludge at them. Pidgeot flew in and folded her wings around herself. A shield of light formed around her, and Roserade's Sludge Bombs were drawn into it and destroyed without touching their targets. Once her Protect faded, the Mega Evolved Pokémon rapidly beat her wings to whip up a vortex of wind. Probopass telekinetically threw Roserade away from her attacker, but Pidgeot's Hurricane curved to follow and strike her anyway.

"Did you see that?" Matt shouted. "The way Hurricane just honed in on Roserade?"

"It is Pidgeot's ability, No Guard!" Rosalita informed him, flying Reyes up next to Sally. "All the attacks that Pidgeot uses or is targeted by will hit!"

"That could be good…" Eleanor briefly paused when Roserade vanished and Dusknoir teleported into her place. The Ghost-type spread his arms, materializing numerous boulders around himself. "...or really bad!" Eleanor finished.

Pidgeot veiled herself in another Protect, guarding herself from the stones that homed in on her when Dusknoir flung them. Sally, Reyes and Shaymin all lacked the ability to do the same, so they had no choice other than to try navigating the Rock Slide on their own. As the smallest of the three, Shaymin had little trouble flying around the stones, but the much bigger Salamence and Staraptor weren't as lucky. Both suffered several strikes, but weathered them through sheer force of will.

"We cannot be held down here, you!" Shaymin warned its companions, both human and Pokémon. "The others can handle them. We must go to Regigigas and Fernando!"

"Yes, I agree," Rosalita concurred. "I have faith in Sheena and Cassy. We must go forward."

"Alright." Matt tapped his Salamence's neck, prompting her to turn her head back to him. "Sally, time to go."

Sally grunted in affirmation before spitting a jet of water down onto Probopass. Pidgeot simultaneously swept Dusknoir away with Hurricane, opening the path for the four Pokémon to press onward.

As they advanced, Rosalita cast a forlorn gaze back at Lingote Palace. Memories of her childhood with Fernando flashed through her mind, and when she returned her attention to Regigigas and the skyship, her lip quivered.

-:-

As Probopass, Kommo-o, Roserade and Dusknoir hung back, the rest of Fernando's army pushed through the streets of La Ciudad Dorada. With the city's wall freshly breached, they no longer needed to stay with the Rock-and-Steel-type to continue their advance.

Things in La Ciudad Dorada were unnaturally quiet. Even in their brainwashed state, the Pokémon could sense things were amiss. They'd been sent with the directive to eliminate any enemies they encountered, so how empty the city seemed unnerved them through their stupor. All shared the same reflexive anticipation: an ambush was definitely coming, though from where, they didn't know.

Or at least they didn't know until Gallade sprang into the air, propelling himself off of a streetlamp just ahead of the army. His sudden appearance caught Honchkrow by surprise, giving Gallade an opening to slash at him with X-Scissor.

Togekiss and Yanmega, seeing their fellow flier in trouble, rushed to his aid. The former acted first, flicking a blade of air at Wally's Pokémon with her wings. He groaned in pain as he was thrown back, only to be caught in mid-air by Tangrowth's extended vines. With Gallade restrained, Yanmega dove at him. The dragonfly bared his fangs, aiming to bite down with a Leech Life attack, but Swellow suddenly appeared and cut him off with Aerial Ace. Seeing this, Tangrowth tightened his grip on Gallade, only for Deivi to jump from a nearby roof and slash away the vines with his own X-Scissor. Rosalita's shiny Shiftry barely had a chance to land before Magmortar turned his cannons on the Grass-and-Dark-type Pokémon to send a Heat Wave flooding over both him and Isabel, the Luxray having darted to his teammate's side mere moments earlier.

Both Isabel and Deivi shuddered under the painful intensity of the flames that engulfed them. Magmortar was so focused on attacking them, however, that he paid no attention to Leonel bubbling up to the surface of the nearby canal. The Bibarel burst from the water, landed on the footbridge crossing it, then rolled up into a ball and lunged at Magmortar. He collided squarely with the Fire-type Pokémon's chest, freeing Isabel and Deivi from Magmortar's assault.

"Bi," Leonel said to the Luxray and Shiftry, all three sharing a look of appreciation for their mutual assistance.

While the trio were distracted, however, Lickilicky took advantage of Magmortar's stunned state. She catapulted herself over him with her tongue and drew in a deep breath before unleashing a Blizzard while still airborne. Leonel, Isabel and Deivi were caught in the wintry blast, but while the latter two shivered and recoiled from the cold, their part-Water-type ally stood indifferent to it.

It was Rosalita's Leavanny, Elena, that came to their rescue. She perched on an Arcane Science streetlamp with her spindly legs and spit silk at Lickilicky, ensnaring the rotund creature and cutting off her attack. Once Lickilicky was fully trapped by String Shot, Elena pulled her crashing down into the ground. Gallade then darted in and struck Lickilicky with a flurry of punches and kicks, each blow from his Close Combat forcing a pained wheeze from her.

A few feet away from Gallade and Lickilicky's tussle, the collared Electivire leapt against the side of a building and used a magnetic pulse to propel herself toward Elena. Flames stirred to life in her mouth, but before she could put them to use, Eleanor's Persian sprang from between two other structures. The Dark-type tackled Electivire and forced her to the ground, turning her momentum from Magnet Rise against her with Foul Play. They struggled in the dirt for a short time, rolling back and forth and snarling at each other as they fought for dominance. It was Electivire that ultimately emerged victorious, driving Persian away by spewing a Flamethrower square into her face.

With Persian left reeling off to the side, Electivire looked upward. Swellow was engaging Togekiss just above the buildings and holding his own against her. None of Togekiss's Air Slashes were landing, as Swellow's superior speed allowed him to weave through them with Aerial Ace. Cassy's Pokémon wasn't paying any attention to the situation on the ground, though, leaving him an easy mark for Electivire to cast an Electroweb up at him.

Swellow struggled within the electrified net, but the prolonged shocks it gave him sapped his strength and swiftly cut off his means of escape. Salvation came in the form of Laura's Swampert, who lumbered out of the same canal Leonel swam through and sucker punched Electivire. The orange light radiating from his fingers flowed back into his arm, swelling his muscles a little further.

Up in the air, Togekiss, Yanmega and Honchkrow had surrounded Swellow while he was restrained by Electroweb. They were closing in on him when the net broke thanks to Swampert's punch to Electivire. Swellow immediately regained his strength and shrieked at the top of his lungs, generating a powerful soundwave that drove Togekiss, Yanmega and Honchkrow away. He then dove into Yanmega, slashing the dragonfly's right flank with his beak.

Meanwhile, on the street, Electivire crackled with angry sparks. Her body was only slightly bruised by the blow she'd taken, but her wounded pride had left her livid with rage. She spun her arms around to build up strength, generating errant electricity that sparked around her body. She then used Magnet Rise to leap many feet into the air before turning downward and aiming her fist at Swampert's head. Electivire wanted to set off an Earthquake that would injure all the Pokémon in the vicinity, but had every intention of catching Swampert in the epicenter.

Swampert, however, had other plans. Had Electivire not been so blinded by her fury, she would have realized something was wrong when Swampert simply waited for her to draw near. By the time she noticed anything at all, it was already far too late. Once Electivire was within reach, Swampert pulled back and punched her again. The Water-type's strike was more powerful than the first, owing to the enhanced strength Power-Up Punch granted him. His muscles swelled even further once the second punch landed, while Electivire was flung into an iron aqueduct nearby, bursting it and spewing water all over the street.

-:-

The sweltering desert winds wrapped around Fernando as he stepped up to the skyship's bow. They licked at him like tongues of fire, making his hair and cape flutter as he watched his sister near from above.

"Rosalita, why?" he sadly mused, watching his sister approach with Matt, Shaymin and Pidgeot accompanying her. It was Matt's presence that turned his despair into anger, and he grit his teeth. "To stand against me with an outsider's aid… from a Chiaki, no less. You truly have lost your way." Fernando pointed forward with his staff. "None shall stop what I must do… even you, Rosalita. Regigigas, it is time!"

Regigigas slowed its advance, while Fernando used his control gauntlet to make the skyship retreat behind the line established by the titan. The count's enemies immediately recognized the shrewdness of his strategy.

"He's making us come to him," Matt observed, "and we're gonna have to go through Regigigas to get there."

"It is unavoidable," Rosalita agreed, shaking her head at the situation.

Outside of the humans' notice, Shaymin narrowed its eyes. Looking at Regigigas called to its mind images from the first civil war, of fighting a losing battle against Fernando III's monstrous Mega Steelix until the gratitude of the people helped turn the tide, all while Regigigas tore the kingdom apart. That had happened because of Shaymin's carelessness, and now, its attempts to hide that truth only led right back to the same fate.

"There is only one thing left to do, you," Shaymin said to itself, just loud enough for Matt and Rosalita to hear. "One last chance for redemption."

Its mind made up, Shaymin extended its legs and darted straight toward Regigigas. Even though the two humans fighting alongside it had heard what it said, it was not until it flew off and left them behind that they realized what it intended to do.

"Shaymin, stop!" Rosalita screamed after her friend. She reached out toward it, but for what reason she didn't know. "Pidgeot, go help Shaymin!" she ordered her guard's Pokémon.

Pidgeot chirped in affirmation of the command, then shot through the air to catch up to Shaymin. The mythical Pokémon wasn't happy to see her, and made no secret of its feelings.

"Why are you here, you?!" it demanded, scowling. "Go and help Rosalita! This is my responsibility, you!"

As the pair flew side-by-side, Pidgeot shook her head. She replied to Shaymin's demand with a flurry of trills, and by the time she was done, Shaymin's eyes had widened to their full round size.

"She sent you to assist me…" Shaymin's shock soon wore off, and it smiled. "I must learn to stop underestimating her, you. But you shouldn't be in dang-"

One of La Ciudad Dorada's protectors cut off the other when Regigigas roared robotically. Its top four dots blinked on and off in pairs, followed promptly by a gust of chilled air blowing from the center of the diamond they formed. Fearful of the Icy Wind, Shaymin hid behind Pidgeot and let the Mega Evolved Pokémon counter with her Heat Wave. The two gusts collided in a burst of steam that nullified both, leaving their users unharmed.

The plume obscured the two sides' view of each other as it spread out. Realizing this presented a fleeting opportunity, Shaymin popped back out from behind Pidgeot and threw an Air Slash into the steam. The blades dispelled much of the cloud on its way through, carrying on until they buffeted Regigigas's body. There was little initial reaction from the titan aside from an angry, mechanical growl, but that wasn't the case for long.

Regigigas retaliated by raising one of its immense arms and pointing it at Shaymin and Pidgeot. A cluster of pink light formed between its fingers, soon solidifying into countless diamonds. Two beams composed of pink light laced with diamonds shot out from the cluster, each aimed at a different target. Shaymin flew around and away from the one pursuing it, but No Guard ensured Pidgeot's found its mark. Pidgeot hung back and cloaked herself in Protect to escape harm.

Even while the part of Diamond Storm aimed at Pidgeot exploded harmlessly against her Protect shell, Regigigas shifted its fingers so the other half would keep chasing Shaymin.

"You'll never catch me, you!" the mythical Pokémon boldly declared. Even so, it knew that the situation as it stood was merely a stalemate. Something had to change, and when Shaymin cast its eyes downward, it got an idea. "Follow me!" it cried to the enslaved titan.

Had Regigigas been thinking for itself, it wouldn't have fallen for Shaymin's obvious trap. But with Fernando's machines warping its mind, all it knew was to attack. Shaymin dropped to a much lower altitude, flying just above the desert floor. When Diamond Storm changed angles to follow, it struck the ground and detonated in a huge blast of smoke and sand. Now free from immediate danger, Shaymin dove head-first into the plume and absorbed the grit into its body.

Up above, Pidgeot saw what Shaymin was doing and whipped up a Heat Wave to distract Regigigas. The great titan crossed its arms to shield itself from the tide of fire, leaving them riddled with small burns.

That cover allowed Shaymin to get behind Regigigas while its attention was diverted. "Take this, you!" it screeched, light already beginning to pour from its body.

Regigigas had no chance to react before Shaymin darted toward its back and exploded. Its Seed Flare packed such a punch that it knocked Regigigas forward, sending the giant down to its hands and knees. The impact of its fall was such that the desert sand beneath it was thrown easily at least a dozen feet into the air.

While Regigigas's thought process was impeded by the armor's influence, its emotions were still present, albeit warped. The same all-consuming rage it felt at Fernando for his actions was redirected at Shaymin, and its entire body shuddered as it growled in fury. A swarm of iron chunks materialized around it, and when it roared, they were sent flying in all directions. Shaymin again took advantage of its speed and size to dance deftly around the onslaught, but Pidgeot was not so lucky. She couldn't put up Protect fast enough and got caught in the Metal Burst, feathers flying as the iron sheared them from her body. Even Sally and Reyes were endangered by it, but they were flying at enough of a distance to avoid it fairly easily.

"Are the two of them going to be okay?" Eleanor asked from her place on Sally's back.

"I'm not sure," Matt replied. "I don't know how long they'll last against Regigigas."

"That is why we must make haste in fulfilling our mission," Rosalita informed her allies. Even as she addressed them, she kept her gaze locked on someone else.

They were near the skyship, and could see Fernando at its bow. He was watching them intently, remaining fixated on his sister. Yet for all the anger and frustration driving him, he made no effort to stop them as they flew overhead, circled around and descended to land on the skyship's deck. No, he knew there was no reason to stop them. This was how it had to be.

"So at last, we stand at the precipice of fate," he greeted Rosalita as he stepped down from the bow to confront her. Matt and Eleanor got off of Sally as she dismounted from Reyes, and Fernando knew his words for them would have been far less polite. "The game of life and death for the kingdom has reached its final round."

"I would once have begged you to stop," Rosalita said to him, hitting him with the same cold fury that he showed her at the train station the day he returned from murdering Sutter. "Not now. You have been consumed by darkness, Fernando, and I am going to tear you from it."

"If that is what you think, Rosalita, then you are already lost." Fernando tightened his hold on the staff to the point where his knuckles turned white. "La Ciudad Dorada will be protected. I _will_ save it. There is nothing more to be said."

"Yet you are so blind that you fail to see _you_ are the only one threatening it!" Rosalita countered. "All the damage done to the kingdom has been because of you!"

"I am not the one standing alongside the descendant of the man who first befouled our home. The man who started all of this so many years ago!" The count reached into his cape and retrieved the one clockwork ball he kept for himself. "I am, however, the one who is going to fix it!"

With that, Fernando threw the sphere into the air and it burst open, releasing his Dragonite. She turned her head toward the dark clouds and howled as soon as she materialized.

Every muscle in Matt's body tensed involuntarily when he saw Dragonite. His mind immediately went back to the day he saw the horrible sight of Sutter's body. Every one of the witnesses to Fernando's escape described the same thing - a Dragonite wearing a strange, glowing collar. The same collar on the neck of the Dragonite now standing before him.

"That's the Dragonite you used to kill my grandfather, isn't it?" Matt already knew the answer to his question, but some tiny part of him wanted to hope that somehow, it wouldn't be the case.

"It's the same one I used to correct a problem all those years ago," Fernando icily replied.

That was it, the confirmation Matt never wanted to hear. The moment the last syllable of the count's answer left his lips, Matt felt a rush of adrenaline surge through himself. He knew that if Cassy was present, she would have tried to stop him from flying off the handle. But as it was, her influence wasn't there, and he reflexively snatched a Poké Ball from his bag and flung it with a snap of his wrist. Anton was summoned to the deck of the skyship, and without a word, Rosalita dispatched Adiela to join him.

"You would stand against me, your own brother and La Ciudad Dorada's protector?" Fernando snapped. "And with this heir to a defiler at your side?!"

"I do it to save the kingdom," Rosalita said back. "You will come to realize that."

"So you would rob me of even that one last reason for my existence…" Fernando took a step back. "You truly are horrible, Rosalita. If you wish to be my enemy, so be it… Dragonite, Bubble Beam!"

"Sally, Hydro Pump!" Matt reflexively countered, thrusting his arm forward.

The two dragons' attacks collided halfway, creating a wave of water that swept across the skyship's deck. Adiela and Anton both retreated from the threatening liquid, while Dragonite and Sally simply ignored it as it washed over their legs.

"Now it's our turn," Rosalita declared, her armor clanging when she jabbed her fist into her hip. Looking to her Pokémon, she said to them, "Adiela, Wild Charge! Reyes, Brave Bird!"

Both the Rapidash and the Staraptor cried out, building their spirits before rushing Dragonite. Each of them surrounded themselves with intense energy, whether it was Adiela's yellow, sparking electricity or Reyes's blue aura. However, even as the pair barreled toward her, Dragonite remained unmoved. Behind her, Fernando was busily manipulating his gauntlet's projection.

"Do you think I am a mere child?" he taunted his sister with a smirk. As a result of his prompting, Dragonite raised her arms and caught both of Rosalita's Pokémon before they could make contact, drawing a horrified gasp from the princess. "No. You will learn that the challenges of leadership have no such easy answers." Turning to Dragonite, he quietly but firmly ordered, "Thunder."

Electricity surged through Dragonite and into the bodies of the two stunned Pokémon in her grasp, making them wail in pain. She firmly held them for several seconds, subjecting them to the shock until she finally let go. Adiela and Reyes reeled back, and excess bolts of electricity scattered all around them.

"No…" Rosalita whispered, her nerves rattled by the brutality of Fernando's tactic.

Both Matt and Eleanor sensed just how shaken their ally was. Eleanor went to her side, promising her, "Rosa, it's not over! I know you can win this!"

"I agree," Matt added before returning his attention to the battle. He heard Rosalita thank them both, but his only response was to take some of the burden off Adiela and Reyes. "Anton, go and use Avalanche!"

The Rhyperior swung both his arms forward, smashing his cylindrical fingers together. A swarm of icy boulders solidified in the air around him and crashed down onto Dragonite, burying her under their weight as their cold made her howl.

With her brother's Pokémon immobilized, Rosalita carefully stepped back and whispered to Matt, "Have you any more Revival Herbs? I have an idea, but it is dependent on them."

"Plenty," Matt confirmed, rummaging in his bag so the vials would clink together.

"Most excellent. Just follow my lead." Tilting her head toward Eleanor, Rosalita added, "We will get you the opening you're waiting for."

Eleanor stiffened up. "I… I'm ready," she said.

Across the deck from where Rosalita and her allies were hatching their plan, one of the ice chunks burying Dragonite shifted and fell from the pile. Mere seconds later, she burst through the rest by whipping up a Hurricane around herself, powerfully roaring all the while. The remnants of Anton's Avalanche shot in all directions, most of them flying over the sides of the ship. Some others instead went in Matt, Eleanor and Rosalita's direction, forcing Sally to melt them with her Flamethrower while the humans shielded their faces.

"Give it one more attack to soften Dragonite up, if you please," the princess quietly asked Matt.

"I can do that." Matt raised his hand into the air, then pointed forward at Dragonite and called out, "Anton, use Rock Wrecker!"

Anton brought his hands together, and tiny stones emerged from the holes in his palms. They merged into a single entity that swelled until it became a boulder of gigantic size, which Anton grasped and lifted over his head before flinging it at Dragonite.

"Stop it with Bubble Beam!" Fernando rushed to order his Pokémon.

Even though Dragonite put all of her strength into her counterattack, it was not nearly enough. The boulder crashed through all of the bubbles she blew and struck her, exploding into dust when it made contact. Dragonite fell onto her back from the immense force, covered in injuries but still not defeated.

"That was… a bit more than just softening it up," Eleanor teased.

Dragonite was already getting back on her feet, so Rosalita immediately followed up by saying, "Reyes, this is on you now. Final Gambit!"

As soon as Rosalita issued her command, Matt understood why she asked him for Revival Herbs. He went in his bag to get one even as he watched Reyes dive-bomb Dragonite. Rosalita's Staraptor had less strength left in his body than he had against Regice, so the aura generated by Final Gambit was less intense than it had been then. Still, when Reyes drove his beak into Dragonite's chest, the orange light exploded with enough force to send Dragonite right back down. Reyes faced a similar fate, getting thrown and landing near his trainer.

Rosalita didn't have to tell Matt what she wanted from him. He simply passed the Revival Herb to her as she walked over to Reyes, and she didn't even stop to collect it. She lowered herself down next to her Staraptor, opened the vial and removed its contents.

"Thank you, Reyes," she said to him as she placed the Revival Herb in his mouth. "You have displayed admirable bravery today."

"Starr," Reyes softly trilled. He slowly chewed on the herb while Rosalita stroked his wing, comforting him.

That moment of peace did not last long. Dragonite's collar, sensing that its wearer had fallen in battle, released an energy pulse as its blue light blinked. Fernando's Pokémon was back on her feet in a heartbeat, fully revitalized. She roared with such might that Matt, Rosalita and Eleanor thought they felt the air itself shake.

Luckily for them, Reyes was able to rise to the challenge. Invigorated by the Revival Herb, he sprang back up and spread his wings in an attempt to menace his foe.

"Reyes!" Rosalita exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "Are you ready to go?"

The Normal-and-Flying-type Pokémon nodded to his trainer and chirped, so she climbed onto his back. She then shot a quick glance over to Matt.

 _"That must be the lead she meant,"_ he realized. "Sally, come on."

 _"Good, he got it,"_ the princess thought as he got on his Salamence. Turning to Fernando, she knew she had to provoke him. "Will you do what you must to grasp victory with your own two hands?"

"How dare you!" Fernando yelled up at his sister as she and Matt went airborne on their Pokémon. He leaped onto Dragonite's back and prompted her to take flight by tapping her with his heel. "You would doubt even that? If I must prove myself to you, so be it!"

 _"That's right, Fernando, follow us,"_ Rosalita thought, watching her brother and Dragonite lift off the skyship's deck. She gave Eleanor a curt nod, then said to Reyes, "Let us go."

Reyes trilled, then pushed off away from the skyship with a mighty flap of his wings. Sally promptly followed.

"The fact you retreat from me is proof you still lack the mettle to lead!" Fernando thundered after them. "Dragonite, Bubble Beam!"

The count's Pokémon aimed at Sally and Reyes, and expelled a torrent of blue bubbles from her mouth. Matt and Rosalita, having heard Fernando issue the command, peered over their shoulders and saw the oncoming assault.

"Sally, behind you!" he alerted his Salamence.

"Reyes, take a hard left!" the princess ordered.

Once they were fully aware of the threat's proximity, Sally and Reyes split off in different directions. Bubble Beam sailed harmlessly between them, further stoking Fernando's frustration. Since he could not pursue both of his nemeses, he pulled Dragonite to the left so they could give chase to Rosalita.

"Come back here, Rosalita! Watch me save our home!"

Meanwhile, down on the deck, Eleanor watched Matt, Rosalita and Fernando ride away into the dark, cloudy sky.

"That's it, then," she said, subconsciously pinning her arms against her sides. She spun on her heel and headed toward the ship's bridge, mumbling to herself, "Time to get to work."

-:-

Swampert, Gallade, Elena, Deivi, Isabel, Leonel, Persian and Swellow were holding their own for the most part against Fernando's forces, but the army's relentless push had forced the allies back. Their conflict had spilled out into one of La Ciudad Dorada's main roadways, affording them more space to exchange blows.

While the other Pokémon fought around them, Isabel glared at Elena and roared with all her might, radiating the bright light of Helping Hand. Rosalita's Leavanny absorbed the light into her body, leaped at Lickilicky, and slashed the Normal-type with her glowing arm. Helping Hand's influence strengthened Elena's Leaf Blade to such a degree that Lickilicky was thrown into the side of a building despite her weight, breaking a deep crack into its stone and shattering its windows.

Elena had barely landed back on her feet when a flurry of Air Slashes struck around her, forcing her to jump back and nearly collide with Isabel. Rosalita's Luxray pushed in front of the Leavanny and vengefully roared at their assailant, Togekiss. A Thunderbolt sparked from her mane and shot in Togekiss's direction, but the Normal-and-Flying-type gracefully twisted around and avoided it. From her vantage point in the sweltering air, she smiled condescendingly down at Isabel and Elena. Even while under Fernando's control, she had enough freedom of thought to shoot a mocking sneer at her foes. After all, how could they reach her when she was so agile?

If Togekiss had more control over her faculties, she would have perhaps known not to let such arrogance consume her. With the warping effects of her brainwashing, her self-confidence kept her still until Swellow smashed into her with his metallically-glittering wings. The impact snapped her back into reality, and she retaliated with an angry, ear-splitting shriek that manifested as soundwaves. Swellow responded in kind, but his Boomburst drowned out Togekiss's Hyper Voice.

Cringing in pain from the deafening noise, Togekiss seethed before pushing her wings together to form an Aura Sphere between them and flinging it into Swellow. The blow stunned Cassy's Pokémon for a moment, giving Togekiss a chance to try and fly away, but it wasn't long before Swellow was back on her tail. She pursued Togekiss across the city, the pair of them racing in blue and white blurs over La Ciudad Dorada. Eventually, the chase circled around toward the street where the other Pokémon were fighting. As they turned back, they darted past an iron weather vane cast in the image of Shaymin's Sky Forme and made it spin.

As they neared the melee, Togekiss flipped over backward to throw another Aura Sphere at Swellow. She'd assumed that the attack would stop Swellow from chasing her, even if briefly as it had done earlier. Her action proved to be grossly miscalculated, as as soon as the orb sailed at him, Swellow pulled his wings in tight and dove straight into the orb. With one swift motion, the bird sliced through it and then slammed into Togekiss, throwing her back onto a nearby roof with a pained cry.

Swellow's moment to indulge in his victory proved short-lived. Mere seconds after his Aerial Ace knocked Togekiss down, a ray of pink light laced with tiny stones struck him and sent him crashing to the street below.

It was a Power Gem attack deployed by Probopass, who was floating toward the battle with Roserade, Kommo-o and Dusknoir at her side. The Rock-and-Steel-type deposited Roserade and Kommo-o in the midst of the brawl, while Dusknoir loomed overhead and clenched his body up. The jagged yellow line on his stomach flashed a sinister glow and he reared back, opening the mouth underneath it. He had conjured numerous wisps of blue fire within, which rained down on the resistance against his master's army. Most struck the ground between their targets, but Persian, Elena, Leonel and Swellow took direct hits, sending the four flying back with burns across their bodies.

Two of the fiery orbs went further astray than any of the others. One hit a fountain built against a house on the street. A Shaymin sculpture atop the fountain was broken off along with a portion of the pipe underneath, causing it to spray water into the air. The other collided with a streetlamp on the opposite side of the path, cracking the Arcane Science bulb powering it. After a moment of sparking and flickering, the entire device violently exploded. Its detonation far exceeded anything the lamp's unassuming appearance would have suggested, consuming the entire street and blowing away both sides of the battle within.

Even though a battle had been fought there, it was not until the blanket of blinding light from the blast started to lift that the street truly looked like a war zone. The buildings and paving stones around the area had been dashed into mounds of rubble, a situation that as bad as it was, had but by a stroke of fate not been much worse. Arcane Science energy could did inherently create heat or fire, but if exposed to fire like that of Dusknoir's Will-O-Wisp, the energy would have reacted explosively. With the nearby streetlamps dented and scuffed from debris, the fact that the detonated streetlamp did not create more fire was likely the sole reason why a cataclysmic chain reaction with the other lamps hadn't leveled the entire street, if not beyond.

Not that it mattered much to the Pokémon, at least at that point. Both those loyal to Fernando and those opposing him were strewn haphazardly around the street. They hadn't quite fainted, so Swampert and Gallade didn't revert to their original forms, but the blast injured them badly enough that they wheezed and struggled with their footing.

Unfortunately for those defending La Ciudad Dorada, Fernando's forces still held a trump card. Their collars, sensing the state his Pokémon were in, flashed red as their failsafe programming took over. Each collar released a pulse of crimson energy through its wearer, and in seconds, their wounds were healed. It wasn't long before they rose, standing over their opponents as if they had vanquished the guardians themselves and crying out in victory.

Yet, the battle was far from over. Probopass, who had floated over the explosion and escaped harm, once more lifted all of her teammates with her Telekinesis. The army set their collective sights on the Sacred Hill and Lingote Palace and set off, intending to finally fulfill the directive programmed into them.

-:-

Shaymin and Pidgeot fought against Regigigas with all their might, but even as powerful as they were, they could not stop its relentless march. Every one of the great titan's tremendous, earth-shaking footsteps brought it closer to the city, and to potential unspeakable horrors that neither Shaymin nor Pidgeot cared to think much about.

Shaymin flew straight in front of Regigigas and shrieked, "Listen to me, you! You are the kingdom's protector! You must free yourself from this!"

Regigigas was unmoved. Its four uppermost dots blinked, and a gust of chilled air blew from the space at their middle. Shaymin screeched in fear and abruptly pulled away, but Regigigas shifted to the left in an attempt to catch it.

Just then, Pidgeot swung around Regigigas's right side. Like how her trainer had been raised from childhood to protect the royal family, she was determined to keep Shaymin safe. She dive-bombed the titan's flank while emanating a purple and gold aura, forcing a pained, static-filled buzz from Regigigas but only enraging it even further. It stopped pursuing Shaymin and raised its right arm in Pidgeot's direction, pinching and then separating its fingers to bring a Diamond Storm to life between them. Pidgeot, exhausted from using Giga Impact, could do nothing but hover in place until the blast of diamonds struck her, sending her spiraling to the sands below.

"Pidgeot!" Shaymin exclaimed in dismay. The mythical Pokémon grit its teeth and rose to a vantage point above Regigigas before it could catch up. "Take this, you!"

A short distance away, Rosalita watched Shaymin rain Air Slashes down on Regigigas. She'd been observing them since just before Pidgeot got shot down, and when the titan swung one of its arms at her lifelong friend, her lip quivered.

"Shaymin, please…" she whispered.

"You must see that your resistance is futile, Rosalita," Fernando shouted at her from Dragonite's back. "Look around you. All you are doing is prolonging the inevitable! If my army is stopped, when Regigigas reaches Lingote Palace, you will have no choice but to surrender. If you do the right thing now, this can end immediately!"

"When Regigigas reaches Lingote Palace?" Rosalita repeated, her eyes widening in horror. Images of Regigigas ripping through La Ciudad Dorada flashed through her mind, and her fear only deepened from how similar the scenes of destruction were to the first civil war. "Fernando, even _you_ must see the madness in this! You are going to destroy what little of our kingdom survived the last time! There won't be anything left for you to protect!"

"Then if you still care about me, surrender now. This is my purpose. It must be. I cannot live another day thinking I have no reason to exis-" Something in the corner of his eye caught Fernando's attention, and he pulled Dragonite to face it. "Bubble Beam!" he commanded.

Dragonite managed to cut off the incoming Flamethrower right in the nick of time, turning it into harmless steam with her Bubble Beam. While the cloud of vapor separated the two sides, Sally flew up next to Rosalita and Reyes.

"He's completely gone," the princess uttered, staring at her armored hands as they trembled. "There is not one iota of my brother still alive in this person… he is-"

"Rosalita!" Matt yelled, snapping her back to reality. He tightened his grip on his Salamence before quietly hissing, "Rosalita, focus! We're the only ones buying Eleanor time to stop all this!"

"That's right…" Rosalita drew a deep breath and slowly exhaled to calm herself. "You are right."

There wasn't time for the pair to converse further, as Dragonite tore through the remaining steam with Thunder. Reyes and Sally split from each other to evade it, but their escape only further angered Dragonite and her master.

The ever-escalating sense of frustration Fernando felt at the situation finally threw a switch in his mind. To that point, he'd been holding back. He had still been hoping Rosalita would see he was right and surrender. But at that moment, as he sat on Dragonite's back with the sounds of war all around him, he came to what he considered a terrible realization.

 _"Rosalita will never come around to what I am saying,"_ he thought. Deep down, he'd known this to be true from the time he saw Rosalita erecting the city's walls. He just refused to fully believe it at first. Now, with no doubt left as to where she stood, he felt true despair creeping up on him. He soon found a useful target for his spiking emotions when his eyes settled on Matt and Sally. "Dragonite, use Horn Drill on that Salamence!"

While Dragonite gave chase to Sally in an attempt to finish her with one decisive blow, Eleanor was busy on the skyship's bridge. Finding the right switches to flip to get into its systems was the easy part. She could do that kind of work in her sleep. What demanded significantly more time and attention was what came next. She was surrounded by easily at least a dozen different holographic projections as she stood at the control panel, manipulating them to dig into the ship's programming line by line.

"All I gotta do is wipe that collar control system outta here," she said to herself. "Shouldn't be too hard."

-:-

The damaged streetlamp's detonation echoed all the way across the city, forcing an uneasy quiet over the throng of people amassed in Dorada Market. They didn't know what exactly the blast meant, and that lack of information put them on pins and needles.

Much of the city's population were corralled to the end of the market against the Sacred Hill. Some trainers and their motley crew of accompanying Pokémon, recruited by Cassy and Sheena with the aid of Laura and Wally, shielded the crowd. The priestess stood firm at the forefront of the gathering, her hands locked together and eyes pressed shut as she used her empathic ability to reach out to where the explosion came from.

Suddenly, one of Sheena's thick eyebrows twitched. She'd connected to an overwhelming presence, one that radiated the same kind of impenetrable fury she tried and failed to pierce in the garden a few days prior. It forced her out of her trance, leaving her to stumble and gasp for air.

"What happened?" Cassy demanded.

"They're coming," Sheena replied, her warning quickly growing more urgent. She turned to Laura, Wally and the other trainers and repeated, "They're coming! Prepare yourselves!"

Laura ate the rest of the Shaymin cookie she'd been snacking on before pivoting to the trainers. "You heard her!" she boomed, crossing her arms. "Time to show 'em just what you guys are made of!"

The cry of the tallest Pokémon from the group, an exotic, long-necked Exeggutor, let the crowd know that the battle had already come to them. She'd spotted both Probopass and Dusknoir emerge over the city once again.

"Exeggutor, do what you have to! Dragon Pulse!" her trainer, a young woman wearing a light white dress and an orange sun hat, commanded. The sightseer then turned to her second Pokémon, a Greninja standing calmly at her side, and said, "Greninja, you go as well! Help Exeggutor with Water Shuriken!"

Without hesitation, Greninja scaled his towering companion's neck. Once he reached a height sufficient enough to give a clear shot, he clapped his free hand against the bubble on his knee to form two throwing stars made of water. He flung them in Probopass's direction at the same time Exeggutor's three heads each fired an intense energy beam. The three rays combined together and took on a draconic shape as they approached Dusknoir, who shielded himself with his arms to lessen the impact. Probopass didn't fare as well against Greninja's attack. She rocked in midair when the Water Shurikens hit her and had to land on the roof of a building at the edge of the market.

Greninja wasn't finished, however. Seeing how little Dragon Pulse accomplished, he bound up to Exeggutor's head before leaping off and diving at Dusknoir. He pushed his right fist against the palm of his right hand to form a blade of glowing black energy, which Greninja used to slash the Ghost-type right as he lowered his arms. The blow forced them apart, and Greninja deftly landed back in the square. He barely had time to rest before Electivire emerged from the nearby road and cast an Electroweb over him, the shock making him scream as he tried to cut the charged threads away.

The members of Fernando's army started invading Dorada Market en masse, charging in from multiple roads leading into the market from the city proper. Their method of attack opened numerous fronts for the resistance against them to fight. Worse still, some of them didn't even keep with the already loose formation. Togekiss, Yanmega and Honchkrow flew into the square instead, while Kommo-o climbed atop one of the buildings and roared at the sky. That bone-chilling cry combined with the way Fernando's army encircled their enemies struck fear into the people of La Ciudad Dorada, and an agitated, panicked chattering grew from the crowd.

"Stay focused!" Laura encouraged the trainers, her arms still tightly crossed. "We have to keep them away from the people and Lingote Palace!"

"I'll take charge of these few…" said a young woman with long, messy dark hair and a flowing black dress that made her appear to be a witch. Training her strange, spiraling eyes on Electivire, Lickilicky and Dusknoir, she brought her purple handkerchief to her mouth and hissed to her Pokémon, "Decidueye, Frenzy Plant."

The young woman's Decidueye, a tall owl Pokémon, wrapped his cream-colored body in his long green wings. His orange eyes flashed from underneath his leafy hood, and he let out a scratchy, barking cry. Giant, thorny roots erupted around him and ripped through the ground, engulfing and whipping at their three targets. Each lash produced visible injuries on Electivire and Lickilicky, but while Dusknoir was groaning in pain just like them, his wounds were less overt.

Seeing his partners wither beneath Decidueye's merciless assault, Magmortar trained his cannons upon the owl. Fireballs flared to life inside them, only to get prematurely destroyed when an Emboar belonging to an older woman sprayed him with boiling hot water.

"Well done, my dear Emboar," his trainer praised him, a gust of wind making her black trench coat and white scarf flutter. "Now, use Head Smash."

Emboar slammed his clublike arms together, snorted, and charged headfirst into Magmortar with speed belying his size. Both he and Magmortar were knocked down, but even with how sore and weak the raw power of the violent blow left him, Emboar was able to push himself right back up. Magmortar remained still on his back until his collar flashed, its pulse once again reviving him.

A few feet away. Emboar's trainer was growing agitated. "Don't let that awful thing overwhelm you, Emboar!" she called out as Magmortar stood over him. "Scald!"

The porcine Pokémon pursed his lips, but before he could spit the hot water at his foe again, Magmortar clubbed him over the head. With any sort of immediate counterattack cut off, Magmortar kept hitting Emboar, switching back and forth between his arms as he used Dual Chop over and over.

Just when it seemed as if Magmortar had Emboar beaten, a pulse of blue electricity surged into him and pushed him away. Emboar's trainer turned to see a younger man in a red trench coat next to her, standing alongside a brown-and-yellow mongoose Pokémon.

"I noticed your Emboar was in trouble, Madame," he said, adjusting his red fedora before nonchalantly flipping a coin. "Gumshoos and I knew we could assist you."

"Much obliged," she replied, bowing politely.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the market, Fernando's Yanmega, Togekiss and Honchkrow were being challenged by a Gliscor and Vikavolt accompanied by an Audino riding on the former's back. The airborne groups were rapidly closing the distance between themselves, making a clash imminent.

"Knives!" the Audino's trainer shouted to her Pokémon. "Give that Yanmega a Charge Beam!"

The Audino gave a pitched chirp in response to her trainer, then cupped her hands around her mouth. A ball of electricity churned between them for a moment before shooting out, striking Yanmega with the sound of a thunderclap.

As Yanmega reeled back, the Vikavolt's trainer stared in awe. "I've never seen an Audino so strong," he marveled.

"Knives really is great, isn't she?" The young woman shoved her hands into the pockets of her grey hoodie and looked up at the man in the golf shirt, then added, "But you have a Vikavolt. _Show me what you've got._ "

"R-right…" The intensity on the part of Audino's trainer gave the golfer a chill. "Vikavolt, use Thunderbolt on Honchkrow!"

Sparks flew between Vikavolt's long, jagged mandibles as he gathered energy. Once he had enough, he loosed it all in one tremendous blast. Togekiss tried to protect her teammate by flicking an Air Slash straight into the electric onslaught, but her act did nothing to slow it down. Honchkrow was easily overwhelmed by the Thunderbolt, while Gliscor swooped toward Togekiss with Knives still along for the ride.

"Your turn, my partner," the Ground-and-Flying-type's flashy trainer said while adjusting his bow tie. "Sky Attack!"

"Knives, jump off now!"

The Audino gracefully leapt from Gliscor's back and landed on the stone ground of the market, leaning to brace herself with her arm. Behind her, Togekiss attempted to stop the glowing Gliscor's dive with an Icy Wind, but even though it did send a chill right to the scorpion's bones, he remained undeterred. When the two airborne Pokémon collided, Gliscor's aura exploded, casting a dramatic light over the square.

Knives, meanwhile, was soon joined by a Leafeon and Glaceon belonging to a young woman. Unlike many of the other tourists, she was appropriately dressed for the hot weather, wearing light, white summer clothing that complemented her flowing blue hair and gave her an obvious air of wealth.

"We have to work together here, there's no other choice!" Knives's trainer demanded as she ran up to the woman. She found the way the lady flaunted her wealth distasteful, but swallowed her annoyance for the time being.

"Oh? And you are?" The lady seemed like she was in a bubble, almost as if she was unaware of the chaos around her.

"You can call me Door…" Right as she said her name, Door saw Probopass and Dusknoir closing in on Knives, Leafeon and Glaceon. "...and you better wake up and help me out here!"

"Door? A nice name… I'm Sarah, pleased to meet you." Sarah's continued nonchalance in the face of the oncoming threat only left Door even more annoyed. Just before Door could yell at her, though, a glint flashed in her eye. "It seems we are in a spot of trouble," Sarah said, staring with surprising intensity at Dusknoir and Probopass. "Leafeon, Glaceon, I do believe Shadow Ball would be best."

"I… what?" Door stammered before shrugging her shoulders. "Whatever. Knives, you use Shadow Ball too!"

Knives, Leafeon and Glaceon lined up next to each other, and the latter two opened their mouths to form dark, purple-and-black orbs while Knives formed one between her hands. Probopass and Dusknoir reacted to the threat by conjuring magnetic spheres and wisps of blue fire, and both sides assailed each other simultaneously. Fernando's two Pokémon made no effort to escape the Shadow Balls, simply floating in place and enduring the blows. Knives, Leafeon and Glaceon, on the other hand, did their best to avoid the onslaught of Magnet Bomb and Will-O-Wisp. They danced safely around Dusknoir's supernatural flames, but try as they might, they could not evade the magnetic silver spheres. Knives and Leafeon shrugged off the impacts from Magnet Bomb, but the same could not be said for the Ice-type Glaceon, who was struck square in his torso by the Steel-type move and collapsed to the ground.

"Oh, Glaceon!" Sarah cried in dismay. "Are you-"

"Porygon-Z, use Electroweb!"

Just as it seemed that Dusknoir and Probopass would pick Door and Sarah's alliance apart, a Porygon-Z flew in and cast a charged net over them, binding them down as they were electrocuted by it. The two young women turned to face their savior, who was soon joined by its trainer, a bespectacled man in a burgundy coat.

"You girls alright?" he asked them while Porygon-Z twitched next to him. "Glaceon took quite the hit."

"Don't worry about Glaceon, I can help him," Door replied. She then narrowed her eyes and hissed, "I'll tell you now, don't call me 'girl' again. _Ever._ "

"Fair enough," the man laughed, adjusting his glasses.

Nearby, a third woman was watching the conflict in the square through a high-tech visor. Her two Weavile stood at her feet, warily observing their surroundings in case they needed to protect her.

"Are you seeing this, Banks?" she said into the microphone attached to her visor, watching as Knives healed Glaceon with a pulse of pink energy. Roserade suddenly bound over Probopass and Dusknoir and readied a Hyper Beam above her head, only for Porygon-Z to explosively disarm her with a Hyper Beam of its own. "The Pokémon wearing collars attack relentlessly, and when defeated, the collars appear to be healing them. They're not staying down long."

 _"That's the potential of Arcane Science energy!"_ the voice of an old man answered through her visor. _"The practices of Arcane Science allow humans to harness the life energy of the land using machinery, giving it virtually any application you can imagine. That is why I sent you to investigate La Ciudad Dorada, after all!"_

"You don't have to tell me twice," the woman teasingly told her boss. She shifted her gaze toward the center of the market, where a martial artist and a young man wearing a black bandana had their Poliwrath and Zoroark wrestling with Fernando's Tangrowth. "I don't think either of us ever imagined something like this would happen."

 _"Stay safe out there, Kidd. I don't want to lose my best employee!"_

Kidd lowered her eyelids and deadpanned, "I'm sure you don't."

Meanwhile, just as Kidd hadn't yet participated in the battle, there was one of Fernando's Pokémon that hadn't either. Kommo-o was still watching over the conflict from his perch atop one of the houses. Even in his brainwashed, controlled state, he knew he couldn't stay out of the battle any longer. All across the market his teammates were facing stiff resistance from the gathered trainers, and their progress toward Lingote Palace was completely stymied. They were failing to accomplish the goal programmed into them via their collars.

He would not fail like them.

Kommo-o wound his powerful legs up and leapt from the roof, his weight shaking the ground when he crashed down into the square. Every Pokémon not already occupied with an opponent turned to stare at him. They'd all seen him arrive with the other members of Fernando's army, but many had forgotten all about him once their attention was diverted and he held back. His presence sent a wave of fear washing over them, and matters weren't helped when he stretched his neck and roared mightily toward the dark sky.

"Poliwrath!" the martial artist shouted to his Pokémon. The Water-and-Fighting-type had still been grappling with Tangrowth, but when her trainer called for her, she flipped over backward and flung Tangrowth back for Zoroark to take care of. "Hit that Kommo-o with Dual Chop!" her trainer ordered, mimicking the motion of a karate chop himself.

Poliwrath croaked in affirmation and sprang toward Kommo-o, her hands glowing with green light. Kommo-o turned toward her and lazily glared at her. The Dragon's eyes lacked a single ounce of fear in them, but were instead filled to with condescension bordering on pity for her. How could such a weak creature dare to challenge him?

The Dragon-and-Fighting-type Pokémon casually batted Poliwrath away, sending her crashing into a nearby sales booth. He then set his sights on the Sacred Hill, but before he could press onward, two Ice Beams caught him squarely in the chest. Kommo-o snarled and whipped his head around, identifying the source of the resistance as Kidd's two Weavile.

"Not enough," Kidd realized when she saw Kommo-o's fury. "Both of you use Laser Focus!"

Both Weavile locked their eyes on Kommo-o, only for him to take notice of their act and begin rushing towards them.

 _"It's game over if Kommo-o hits them with Sky Uppercut, like it did to Poliwrath…"_ Just then, Kidd noticed both Weavile's eyes flash. Her fluffy brown pigtails shook as she hurried to tell them, "Use Ice Beam now!"

Kidd's twin Weavile brought their claws together, chilling the air between their tips. The moisture in the air soon solidified and shot into Kommo-o's chest, both rays twice as intense as the prior ones.

Kommo-o angrily growled and glared down at the Weavile. Such small, insignificant Pokémon, and yet, they had stopped him dead in his tracks. Maybe, if he was in his right mind, he would have relished the challenge as an opportunity to assert his dominance. The influence of his collar robbed him of that. His simplified thoughts told him only one thing - destroy all who stood in his way and take Lingote Palace.

Tongues of fire wrapped around Kommo-o's fists, and he swung them against the two Ice Beams, cutting off the freezing onslaught. Kidd's Weavile slowly backed up and nervously glanced at each other, well aware of the danger they were in.

"Allow me to take care of this," the witch trainer told Kidd, stepping between her and Kommo-o. Decidueye soon joined her, and she pulled up her left sleeve, revealing a black bracelet with a green crystal set into it.

"A Z-Ring!" Kidd exclaimed in surprise.

The witch crossed her arms, causing a shadow in the shape of Decidueye's head to appear from the crystal. "The living world and spirit world connect as one," she recited. She leaned forward and hid her face behind her hands, causing a plume of energy to flare up around her body. "Where the line between life and death blurs, the truth of existence shall be found."

Decidueye stood before his trainer as she straightened up. When she separated her hands and pushed her head forward, the energy around her flowed into Decidueye. An arrow of light made of multiple interlocking triangles flashed in front of him.

"And now, that which belongs in the spirit world shall be brought back there!" the strange young woman cried. "Decidueye, use Sinister Arrow Raid!"

Decidueye shrieked viciously and rocketed skyward with a powerful beat of his wings. At the apex of his ascent, he threw his wings open, scattering numerous arrow-shaped quills from his plumage. With the quills surrounding him, he dove in Kommo-o's direction like a missile. He pulled back at the last moment and flew over Kommo-o's head, but the quills all struck their target before exploding in a huge plume of spiritual energy. Decidueye landed in front of his trainer to observe his work with satisfaction.

As the purple light faded from around Kommo-o, the humans and Pokémon opposing him discovered that he was down on one knee. Slowly he rose, and although his armored scales were covered in gashes, he was more infuriated than injured.

"It survived?!" the witch hissed in disgust and surprise.

At first, Kommo-o growled at Decidueye and his other enemies, but such a display soon ceased to satisfy his erupting rage. He howled at the sky and crossed his arms, subconsciously mimicking the motion he had been opposed with moments earlier, and started rubbing them together. This action scraped his scales against each other, creating a horrible, steadily intensifying noise.

All seemed lost as Kommo-o prepared to overwhelm the palace's protectors with a supercharged Clanging Scales. Just as he lifted his arms above his head, however, he was suddenly struck in the face by a simultaneous Shadow Ball and Gunk Shot. He staggered back and turned his angry gaze at whoever it was that had the nerve to ambush him in such a way.

Somehow, a Palossand and a rainbow-colored Muk had gotten between him and his foes without his notice.

"It's 'bout time for you to pay for turnin' on us like that!"

Kommo-o shook off the sludge from Gunk Shot to clear his vision in time to see Noel descend into the market with Leon at her side. Even under Fernando's brainwashing, he recognized his former masters, lowered himself, and growled threateningly at them. Sheena was the only human of the resistance group to have a reaction to their presence, as she was the only one to have already met them.

"You actually _did_ survive!" the priestess exclaimed.

"Of course Sis and I did," Leon replied, smugly pointing at himself with his thumb and grinning broadly. "Ain't you learned not to underestimate us yet?"

Noel flashed a proud smirk at her brother, then jabbed her finger at Kommo-o and sharply said, "You turn your back on us like everyone else, and for who? The little prince? We'll take you out and then go beat him!"

Kommo-o's attention shifted to Noel and Leon alone, focusing exclusively on them while the others vanished from his mind. He lowered his head and charged at them, the scales on his head glittering like metal. Palossand moved in front of Muk and protectively stretched to cover him. The sand in her body hardened into steel as well, and the impact of Kommo-o's Iron Head against her resulted in little besides a horrible scraping noise.

"Thanks for that one, Bro," Noel said in gratitude for the Iron Defense shield. "Now, Muk, how's about another Gunk Shot?"

Muk slithered on top of Palossand and choked another glob of sludge right into Kommo-o's face and eyes. He flailed and clawed at his face, trying desperately to pull the thick, sticky substance away, only for the mass to split apart the more he attacked it. Once he managed to partially clear his eyes, he roared and swung his fist at Muk and Palossand only for something to hold him back mid-punch.

The hunter siblings both started laughing, and Noel slapped Leon on the back.

"Look at that, Bro! Kommo-o's all confused… it thought we came alone!"

"You were right when you said gettin' them with us was a good idea, Sis."

"I _am_ the brains after all."

Initially unable to see what was holding his fist back, Kommo-o howled in rage and started flailing again. It was when he raised his arm above his head that he finally saw his assailant - hanging on to his fist was none other than Mega Gallade.

"Gallade, you're safe!" Wally cried in relief. "I was so worried!"

"He ain't the only one we picked up on our way here," Noel smugly revealed.

Practically on cue, Mega Swampert, Persian, Swellow, Elena, Deivi, Isabel and Leonel all came running into the square. Gallade joined them by kicking off Kommo-o's fist and backflipping to land perfectly on his feet.

"Thanks for finding my buddy Swampert!" Laura told the siblings once she embraced her Pokémon.

"You ain't got anythin' to worry 'bout," Noel told her. "The whole lot of 'em had their lights knocked out, but we helped 'em get back together again. Figured you all would need the support."

"Y'know, Sis…" Leon cut in, his eyes flicking over to Kommo-o as the dragon rubbed away the sludge, "...I ain't usually the one who does the thinkin', but it looks to me like it's time to serve up that revenge we were talkin' 'bout."

"You're right on the money, Bro." Noel turned to Wally, Laura, Sheena and Cassy and asked them, "You guys want in on this?"

"You don't have to ask us twice."

Cassy hadn't bothered to check with the others, but she happened to be right, as they all shared her sentiment. The humans clustered together while their group of Pokémon did the same, bracing to all attack Kommo-o.

"All right, go!" all six of them cried in unison.

That prompting was all the Pokémon needed to bring their full power down on Kommo-o. Gallade swung his arm to flick a blade of purple energy at the dragon, Swellow unleashed a deafening blast of sound, Swampert bound toward Kommo-o with his fists wrapped in icy air, and Persian fired a Dark Pulse from the gem on her forehead. Rosalita's Pokémon joined in, with Elena leaping forth to slash Kommo-o with Leaf Blade, Leonel rolling to tackle him, Deivi spitting a Seed Bomb, and Isabel using Thunderbolt. Palossand and Muk also contributed with Shadow Ball and Gunk Shot, respectively.

All the different attacks in the onslaught hit Kommo-o at roughly the same time, and all he could do was cover himself with his arms in a feeble act of defense. The sheer amount and variety of energy he was hit with triggered a huge, bright explosion that the humans in the market had to shield their eyes from.

The light from the blast faded a short time later, revealing Kommo-o lying prone across the broken stone ground. It had taken everything they had, but the defenders of the Sacred Hill had won the war. The enemy army's leader had fallen, and the other Pokémon knew they stood no chance, even with the collars influencing their minds. They started to slowly retreat, too dumbfounded to escape any faster.

"That's right, you losers! Run!" Noel mocked them. "Run and tell that Fernando we're comin' for him!"

With that, Noel threw back her head and started laughing maniacally. Leon, Wally, Laura and the other tourists and townspeople, meanwhile, started celebrating their victory. Things had been frightening for a lot of them, with worry about the oncoming danger consuming them once Rosalita set off the evacuation alarm. Now, their relief and jubilation flowed freely.

Sheena and Cassy, on the other hand, couldn't stop staring at Kommo-o.

"You sense it too, don't you?" Cassy asked, a bead of sweat rolling down her brow.

"I do," the priestess ominously replied, clenching her fist in front of herself. "I don't even need to use my Transcendence to tell. Something is wrong."

Sheena's warning turned out to be a prophetic one. The light on Kommo-o's collar shifted from red to black, a change that made both her and Cassy feel as if their hearts had stopped. Kommo-o's eyes completely filled with a dull red glow as the collar's influence scrubbed away what free will he still possessed. All that remained by the time he stood back up were simple directives: destroy the enemy and take the palace by any means necessary.

Kommo-o clenched up and let out a horrific screech that shattered the windows near him. It wasn't until then that the vast majority of the people in the plaza realized what was happening, and their celebration instantly turned to murmurs of panic.

"Sis, what's happenin'?" Leon asked, his voice shaky.

One thing Noel usually prided herself on was her ability to project an image of strength even when she had none. That talent had helped her and Leon get through countless nights on the bleak streets of Pyrite. Yet, in that moment, even her base instincts failed her. She couldn't find a single word to reassure Leon with.

Meanwhile, Kommo-o's collar released another energy pulse. When it washed over the other Pokémon in the army, their collars turned pure white. Not only did this wipe away their limited autonomy, it made them into subservient soldiers under Kommo-o's control. They all disengaged from what they were doing and dragged themselves to their master's side.

"M-Miss Champion, what do we do now?" Wally stuttered. The way the army closed ranks around Kommo-o had made him realize what was coming, but like Leon, he needed reassurance.

Luckily for him, Laura sensed how he felt. "Don't worry, kid. I've got your back." She crossed her arms again, and without turning her head called out to all her allies, "This is it! If this is how they want to go, well, it's time to show them just how we roll!"

With that, the two armies issued their battle cries, charged at each other and began to clash. The war wasn't just not over, it was just beginning.

-:-

Shaymin was many things. The creator of a kingdom that lasted over half a millennium. An unaging, nigh-immortal guardian. The guide of the humans who came and went serving La Ciudad Dorada during their time on Earth.

But that day there was one thing Shaymin wasn't, and the weight of all its work burdened its mind thanks to that one shortcoming. For all its power and all its effort, it wasn't strong enough to stop Regigigas's relentless march. It had ceaselessly buffeted the titan with everything it could muster, but Regigigas shrugged off every assault. Its periodic counterattacks didn't hit Shaymin, but that didn't matter. What mattered was the mission Fernando forced upon it.

Regigigas had to reach Lingote Palace no matter who or what stood in its way. Aside from Shaymin and Pidgeot harassing it, there had been little impeding its journey. That changed when it finally reached the walls protecting La Ciudad Dorada. Regigigas walked right up to the barrier, but stopped moving when some its memories resurfaced.

The wall. It wasn't there the last time Regigigas went to La Ciudad Dorada. But why was it there now? At first, Regigigas couldn't remember, but the more it pondered the situation, the more of its memory punched through the armor's influence. Images of chaos and war came to the titan's mind, of burning buildings and vast, violent conflict. Finally, it remembered - the last time Regigigas went to the city was during the first civil war, and it had wrought that devastation searching for Fernando III. Now, though… what was it doing now? The last thing it could clearly remember was being woken up by someone familiar to it. Fernando III's descendant, that was it. The kingdom was again in crisis, and it was once more a Fernando who had wandered from the path of gratitude, so how could it be _serving_ the will of such a person?

Up above Regigigas, the skyship started to cross over the wall. Matt and Rosalita were still locked in combat with Fernando, with the count's Dragonite managing to hold both Sally and Reyes in check. He glanced down at Regigigas and clenched his teeth when he saw that it had stopped moving.

"Regigigas, what are you doing?" he growled to himself. He couldn't focus on the titan for long, as he heard Matt command Sally to use Flamethrower. "Dragonite, block that with Thunder!" he ordered.

Dragonite's lightning bolts and Sally's flame met in the space between the combatants, and the combined energies exploded into a smoky cloud. Fernando seized on the opening to guide Dragonite downward and head for Regigigas's side.

Suddenly, Shaymin emerged seemingly out of nowhere and charged into Dragonite's chest. As it held Fernando's mount back, it yelled, "You must stop, you!"

"Do not get in my way, Shaymin! I've no time to deal with this sort of nonsense!"

Fernando tapped Dragonite on the shoulder, and in response to his prompting, she grabbed Shaymin in her hands and spun around. She then beat her wings to whip up a whirling Hurricane, blowing the mythical Pokémon away from her.

With Shaymin's obstruction dealt with, Fernando turned his attention back to Regigigas. "I'm not sure what's gotten into you," he said to it, "but I need you to keep going."

After activating his gauntlet by closing his fist, Fernando pointed it toward the wall. The gem on its back emitted a flashing red pulse, which the armor soon replicated. In an instant, Regigigas's memories and free will were suppressed once again. At first, the titan shook back and forth and desperately tried to resist the armor's power, but its resistance was soon choked out, and its behavior returned its prior robotic state.

"Reyes, Brave Bird!"

Rosalita and her Staraptor came tearing through the fading smoke, but Fernando and Dragonite pulled back to evade them.

 _"If we stay near Regigigas, Rosalita may try to stop it,"_ he realized. Acting on that fact, he taunted his sister by saying, "Last chance to stop what you're doing and watch me save our home."

"Never!" she immediately answered, unwittingly taking Fernando's bait. "Reyes, use Brave Bird again!"

 _"That's right, come this way,"_ Fernando thought as he turned Dragonite around. To ensure Regigigas followed his orders, he closed his left fist and pointed it at the wall before leading Rosalita away.

The armor emitted yet another crimson pulse, and before it fully faded, Regigigas pulled its right arm back. Once again, it was only able to focus on accomplishing the mission, and the wall was in the way of that. It had to be eliminated.

In one motion, Regigigas punched the wall with all its might. Its tremendous fist pierced completely through the barrier, sending stone shards raining onto the buildings below. Regigigas could have just broken straight through at that point, but a tiny spark at the very back of its mind kept it from doing so. The armor's control was starting to fail again. Even so, Regigigas couldn't stop itself from acting out its programming. It was as if Regigigas had become an unwilling passenger in its own body.

Instead of simply breaking through the wall, Regigigas reached into the giant hole left by its punch and pried the two sections of the barrier apart. It took all of Regigigas's strength to separate them, and both the stones and the underlying mechanisms made horrible grinding noises as they were forced to move. Regigigas's act gave it an unimpeded view of the city, but even as it towered over the structures in front of it, it was greeted by an unexpected sight.

Waiting for it on the other side of the wall was a detachment of the palace guards' Pokémon. Two Golurk, eight Bronzong, and four each of the Bisharp, Sigilyph and Escavalier stationed themselves there while the rest stayed behind at Lingote Palace. Unbeknownst to Fernando and thus to Regigigas, Edrei had commanded them to take up positions at the edge of the city in case this very scenario came to pass. Their standing order was as simple as Regigigas's: should the great titan arrive, they were to hold it back with everything they could muster.

One of the Bisharp, clad with faded armor riddled with dents and scratches reflecting his many years of combat training, had assumed leadership of the squadron. He turned back to the Pokémon under his guidance, cried out in a high pitch, and waved his arm at their designated target. The others reacted without hesitation, all firing beams of silver light directly into Regigigas's face. Each Pokémon made the best of their respective training, using their strength and endurance to ensure there was not a single break in their Flash Cannon bombardment.

The sustained attack checked Regigigas's advance, but dealt little actual damage. The salvo left the titan more annoyed than hurt from the constant blows to its face, and every time another shot made contact, its mechanical growling grew louder. This anger ironically led the spark of free thought in Regigigas's mind to grow stronger, but it was nowhere near enough to stop the giant from lashing out. While still holding on to the two sections of the wall it had pried apart, Regigigas leaned forward and bent down at the knees. Countless jagged chunks of iron materialized around it, and by springing back to its full height, it unleashed the Metal Burst on its foes. The iron pieces rained on the guards' Pokémon like a downpour of heavy spears, not only slicing at them but smashing the structures beneath them apart.

Having recovered from Dragonite's Hurricane, Shaymin observed the complete overwhelming of its allies with a sense of dismay. Time was up, and the mythical Pokémon knew it. Regigigas wasn't just awake, it was _here_. An immediate, present threat no longer taking up some nebulous point in the future. Nothing could stand in the way of it annihilating La Ciudad Dorada, if that was what Fernando desired.

 _"There's one thing, actually,"_ Shaymin realized with a nervous gulp. _"Me…"_

Shaymin couldn't lie to itself. For all the bravado it displayed in its Sky Forme, and all the genuine strength backing that bravado up, it was scared. Not just the kind of fear that so many children of La Ciudad Dorada felt from the thunder of the kingdom's storms, but the sort of all-consuming terror one experienced when facing a threat to their life itself.

As it floated in place and trembled, Shaymin's eyes flicked across the land it was responsible for protecting, and it spotted the numerous fronts the war was being fought on. Matt and Rosalita. The tourists in the market. Edrei, his subordinates, and their Pokémon. All of them were fighting with everything they had to save La Ciudad Dorada.

"What am I thinking?" Shaymin said to itself. "Their lives are brief when it comes to how long they are on this Earth. I have lived for centuries, and yet, I hesitate." The mythical Pokémon took a deep breath and felt its nerves calm as it exhaled. "I have nothing to fear. It has been a good life." Recalling the time it had spent with all the kings and their families over the years, Shaymin smiled, resigning itself to what it had to do. "If this is the end, I will fight until my life is no more!"

Having firmly established its resolve, Shaymin shrieked at the top of its lungs and darted straight for Regigigas. The titan didn't react at all to its approach at first, and had Shaymin not been so reckless, it would have realized it was being led into a trap. Regigigas certainly didn't want to take such action either; its stirring consciousness was screaming at it to stop, but the armor had too tight a hold on its mind.

As things were, Shaymin drew far too close to Regigigas before the top four dots on the titan's face flashed and an Icy Wind whipped up at their center. The mythical Pokémon squealed and tried to pull away, but ended up getting swamped by the freezing gust. Shaymin reeled through the air, immobilized by the cold chilling it to the bone. It was left completely vulnerable, and Regigigas took the chance to reach out with its right hand and tightly ensnare Shaymin between its gigantic fingers.

Up above, Rosalita nearly lost her grip on Reyes when she saw Shaymin's fate. "Shaymin!" she gasped in horror, watching as Regigigas squeezed the tiny creature. When Shaymin disappeared into Regigigas's grasp, Rosalita could see not only her future but the future of her land and people go along with it. Should Shaymin meet its end, it would be the end of _everything_ she knew.

"Shaymin lives forever, but it's really no more immune to death than my grandfather or your parents, right?" Matt ventured after guiding Sally to hover next to Reyes. When Rosalita nodded to him, he turned away and scowled helplessly. "We have to buy Eleanor time, but what can we do? Nothing we tried has been able to stop Regigigas! The two of us can't do anything al-"

"The Golden Sky Bouquet," Rosalita interrupted, her realization earning an inquisitive look from Matt. "When Shaymin heard the voices of the people expressing their gratitude, it erupted with a breathtaking power," she explained, recalling the stories of her youth. Even though she now knew them to be rooted in lies, she still believed in their message. "The shining golden light washed over Regigigas and all the land, revealing to it the people's remorse. Now calmed, Regigigas returned to its slumber, and peace reigned once again."

Understanding what the princess was suggesting, Matt asked her, "How do we do it?"

Before she could answer, Rosalita spotted Fernando coming around on Dragonite to attack them again. "I shall take care of that," she hurriedly told Matt. "You keep him from interfering!"

"Wait, how am I-" Matt's inquiry went without notice. Rosalita was already gone, racing toward Lingote Palace on her Staraptor's back. He laughed gently to himself when he turned his head and saw Fernando coming his way. "I guess that's why she's the princess and I'm the knight."

Even though he still firmly believed Rosalita and Reyes would be more suited to holding her brother back, Matt trusted her judgment. He guided Sally to take a position between Rosalita and Fernando, forcing the count to pull Dragonite to a stop. The air between the two sweltered with not only the heat of the desert but the burning hatred each held for the other.

"Get out of my way!" Fernando growled at him. "I have no time to waste on the likes of you!"

"Say I did, then what?" Matt pressed down on Sally's back. A flame flicked from her mouth, and Fernando realized they weren't going to give in to his demand. "If I let you go after her, what will you do then?"

Fernando sighed in irritation. "How many times do I have to say the same thing? She will watch as I defend our kingdom from those coming to destroy it! That is my rightful place!"

" _You_ are the only one destroying this city!" Matt angrily countered. Gesturing toward the city below, he continued, "Look around at your kingdom, Fernando! Look at it! La Ciudad Dorada is being destroyed by _your_ actions, and who are the ones fighting to protect it? The outsiders you hate so much! You said you wanted to prove your existence wasn't a mistake and that you had a place to belong in your family. You are _destroying that place!_ There won't be anything left for you to have a place in!"

The searing winds blew through Fernando's hair and under his cape as he gazed down at the city. His city. Ordinarily he wouldn't have paid the words of someone like Matt any mind, but those words had forced his attention onto what was taking place below their duel.

He saw Regigigas towering over the guards' defeated Pokémon, with the structures around them smashed to bits by Metal Burst. The road that had been incinerated by the explosion of the streetlamp. The war unfolding in Dorada Market. Shaymin trapped in Regigigas's grip.

Fernando's eyes went wide and his breathing grew shallow as a horrifying realization invaded every inch of his consciousness. It was true, La Ciudad Dorada _was_ being destroyed. It was also true that there were numerous people, both city natives and those foreign to it, fighting to defend it. But if they were protecting the kingdom, there had to be an enemy for them to fight. Those in the market were locked in combat with Kommo-o and its ally Pokémon, while on the opposite end of the city, the guards' partners and Shaymin had fallen to Regigigas. Kommo-o, Regigigas, and the other Pokémon… they were the enemy destroying the kingdom. But were they really? None of them were acting out of their own free will. Whether due to the collars or the mechanical armor, all of them were attacking on behalf of the mastermind who shackled them with the devices, and there was only one person guilty of that.

Fernando was the enemy, the threat to his beloved home. There was no way he could deny it to himself. Matt was right. He was right, and that was the absolute truth. In that instant, when he finally realized what he had done, Fernando's mind broke. He could feel everything - his dreams, his education, his childhood promises with Rosalita - crashing down on him, crumbling just like the mountain Regigigas and the Golden City had been buried beneath. He would never have a place in the kingdom, and that realization caused him to completely lose his grasp on reality.

"Silence yourself, you scoundrel!" he roared at Matt, unable to accept what he could see with his own eyes. "I will never let an outsider, let alone one of the same blood as the man who corrupted my kingdom, speak to me in such a fashion!"

With that, Fernando brandished his staff. The container on its top opened, and sparks flew from the Griseous Orb as the jewel's energy charged. Matt, realizing what Fernando was going to do, prompted Sally to fly away. His effort was in vain, however, as the bolt that cracked from the Griseous Orb directly struck his Salamence. Sally growled in pain, and when gravity's pull on her intensified, she started spiraling downward. Both she and Matt knew that they would be badly injured if they hit the ground, so without Matt even giving her a direction, Sally changed the angle of her pitch so she would fall onto the deck of the skyship instead.

Matt tumbled off Sally's back when she crashed. He groaned and pushed himself up just in time to see Fernando land and jump off of Dragonite.

"Once I eliminate you, the corruption will be undone!" the count yelled, pointing at his nemesis. There was such a fire in his eyes that Matt almost felt surprised they hadn't turned red. "Now go burn with your grandfather! Dragonite, Horn Drill!"

Just like she had done with Sutter years earlier, Dragonite lunged at Matt, intending to strike the same sort of killing blow with her spinning horn. Before she could reach him, however, Anton appeared and blocked her path by grabbing her arms.

"Oh, right, Anton stayed behind…" Matt said in relief.

The two powerful Pokémon pushed against each other, but with the power her collar granted her, Dragonite gradually overwhelmed Anton. Even though she had been ordered to attack Matt, she turned her wrath on Anton first, forcing her Horn Drill closer and closer to his face. A sudden neigh interrupted their clash, and moments later, Adiela smashed into Dragonite's side wreathed in crackling bolts of electricity.

Meanwhile, Rosalita and Reyes arrived above Dorada Market. By that point, all of Fernando's Pokémon besides Kommo-o had slumped over, exhausted by Kommo-o controlling them. The Sacred Hill's defenders were mostly still standing thanks to Door and Knives healing them with assistance from a local nurse's Clefable using Soft-Boiled. Even then, Kommo-o was more than able to fight on alone, battling to a stalemate despite being overwhelmed in terms of numbers.

While Greninja, Zoroark, Swellow and Decidueye launched an assault on Kommo-o, Rosalita flew over to the other trainers and the people they were protecting.

"Listen to me!" she called out to them. "In order for this to end, I need you to express all the gratitude you can! Think of anything in your lives you feel gratitude for and send those thoughts to Shaymin! Otherwise, Shaymin will die and the city will go with it!"

"Shaymin will die…?" Wally said to himself, a chill running down his spine as he watched Rosalita head up to talk to the guards. "Miss Champion, I don't understand what is happening…"

"Just do what she said," Laura replied. "It's the only choice we've got. What do you feel gratitude for, kid?"

"Well…" Wally began, though he hesitated at first. Gallade bumped his arm, and when he saw his loyal partner, he felt better. "I'm thankful for Gallade and my other Pokémon, who have always stuck by my side. Being a trainer is tough, but I've come so far with them… also, I am thankful for my health, after I was sick for so long… what about you, Miss Champion?"

Laura turned to the Swampert at her side, and he met her gaze curiously.

"If there's one thing I'm grateful for, it's you, buddy," she said. "You've seen me at my worst and still stuck with me. Not just you, but everyone back home. I wouldn't be where I am without you."

Swampert smiled bashfully, as if to say that he felt the same.

All around them, the panic of the battle with Fernando's army was replaced by a strange sense of serenity. What had been screams of terror and orders for combat turned into words of gratitude, even as the Pokémon continued working to hold Kommo-o back. The citizens and tourists found themselves no longer afraid of what would happen, their optimism swelling as they thought of all the good they had in their lives.

-:-

Inside Regigigas's hand, Shaymin was suffering. The titan was squeezing it with just enough force to subject it to agonizing pain without immediately killing it, but even then, Shaymin knew it couldn't hold out for much longer.

"Ah… ahh…" the mythical Pokémon cried, its voice strained. With each tightening of the titan's squeeze, Shaymin felt its life ebb and waver, its lungs barely able to fight the crushing grip surrounding it for breath.

Suddenly, just when Shaymin felt like it was about to succumb, countless voices sounded in its head. It perked up as soon as it heard them. They were expressing thanks for all sorts of things, from family bonds to good health to companionship and everything in between. As Shaymin listened to them, it realized it no longer felt like giving up. In fact, even though Regigigas hadn't loosed its Crush Grip at all, Shaymin no longer felt any pain.

"These voices…" Shaymin said out loud, as golden light started radiating from its body. It had to think for a moment, but it soon remembered where such a thing had happened before. "The gratitude of all the people… just like in the first civil war, you've decided to end it like this, you?" It grinned, thinking of Rosalita. "I guess it shouldn't surprise me. You've always been a daring one, you. If this is your choice, so be it!"

The golden light strengthened to such a degree that it spilled from between Regigigas's fingers and bathed La Ciudad Dorada in its warmth. On the skyship's deck, Fernando ceased his attack on Matt and ran to the guardrail to see what was happening, while Rosalita stared in awe on her way back to the craft.

"So this is the Golden Sky Bouquet..." she uttered.

As the erupting light continued to intensify, the same triangular arrow shape from the witch trainer's Z-Ring flashed in front of Regigigas's hand. Within its grip, Shaymin had gained so much strength that it was able to begin pushing the titan's fingers apart.

"You need to return to your senses, you!" it screeched at its brainwashed captor. "If you can't do it by yourself, I'll set you straight myself, Regigigas! Now take this!"

Both Shaymin's power and the gleaming glow radiating from its body reached a peak. Harnessing the immense amount of gratitude it had been given along with its own life energy and the Gaia flowing in the land nearby, it unleashed an explosion that dwarfed any Seed Flare it had ever used before. Its detonation was so vast in scope that it consumed Regigigas, freeing Shaymin from its Crush Grip and sending the titan skidding back from the ruined wall and away from the city. By the time it stopped moving, hills of sand had collected behind its immense legs.

The skyship was also caught in the turbulence, throwing Matt, Fernando and their Pokémon down onto the deck. When the count pulled himself back up on the guardrail and saw what had happened, he flew into even more of an unhinged rage.

"I won't let you get away with using something so sacred against me, Rosalita!" he yelled out at the open sky, unable to see his sister. He snapped his fist closed to activate his gauntlet and commanded, "Regigigas, Metal Burst!"

For all the immense power Shaymin wielded with Golden Sky Bouquet to overwhelm Regigigas, it still hadn't defeated the titan. That left Regigigas able to harness the same power in its counterattack. It clenched its body up as a giant swarm of iron pieces appeared around it, then swung its arms skyward to send them flying at Shaymin. Despite it being Regigigas's strongest Metal Burst yet, Shaymin still had strength to spare and used it to navigate the storm of steel with little effort. Not only that, while Regigigas was occupied with Shaymin, it was suddenly hit from behind by a Hurricane from Edrei's Mega Pidgeot. He'd forgotten all about the guard's Pokémon after she fell into the desert earlier.

"That was the Golden Sky Bouquet?" Matt wondered, still uneasy on his feet. "Rosalita wasn't kidding about it…"

Fernando lashed around and spat at him, "You have no right to invoke its name!" Pointing his fist toward Matt, he started to say, "Dragonite, Hor-"

Dragonite braced herself in preparation to strike, but her order never came. Fernando was so consumed with his fury at Matt that he left himself completely open to an ambush from his sister. Reyes dove into him from behind, forcing a sickened wheeze from him as he fell once more to the ship's deck. Rosalita then leapt off her Staraptor's back, landed near her brother's prone form, and ripped the gauntlet from his arm while he was still dazed.

"Consider this the end of what you've done," she scolded Fernando as she backed away from him, "and the beginning of justice being served."

Rosalita threw the gauntlet down, and Fernando snapped back to reality just in time to see her raising one of her legs over it. In an instant, all his anger turned to sheer panic.

"No, Rosalita, don't do it!" he cried out. "You won't be able to stop it!"

"You have sacrificed any right for me to listen to you," she coldly replied, believing his response meant she wouldn't be able to stop his army. She drove her foot straight down into the gauntlet's gem, shattering it with her years of well-honed, athletic strength.

The moment Rosalita destroyed the gauntlet, Dragonite's collar started to flash, and Fernando's Pokémon froze in place. Regigigas reacted in the same fashion, and even though those on the skyship couldn't see it happen, Kommo-o and the rest of the army in the market also ceased all movement.

"What is this, Rosalita?" Matt asked her, ignoring Fernando's increasing panic.

"Without the control device, the Pokémon can't receive commands even if the system is still active," the princess explained. She raised her voice for what she said next, making sure her brother heard every venomous word. "Of course, we have an answer for that as well, don't we?"

It was not until that moment that Fernando finally realized Eleanor was nowhere to be seen. "Where is the engineer?" he begged Rosalita on his hands and knees, well aware of Eleanor's talents. "What have you done?"

Rosalita turned her back and ignored him. Coincidentally, Eleanor's voice came through the ship's radio mere seconds later. It was loud and clear, allowing Matt, Rosalita and Fernando to hear her every word.

 _"Hey, you guys!"_ she called out from the bridge. _"Wanna see a magic trick?"_

Matt lowered his eyelids and deadpanned, "I suppose it doesn't surprise me she'd do it like this."

 _"This is a two-way radio, Matt. I can hear you,"_ Eleanor snarked back. _"Doesn't matter, though. Now, for my coup de grace, I call this one 'Making Your Crazy Brother's Evil Smile Disappear!' Abracadabra!"_

Although Matt, Rosalita and Fernando couldn't see her do it, when they heard a loud click from the other end of the radio, they all knew it was Eleanor hitting the shutdown key. If they hadn't already realized it, they would have when Dragonite's collar sparked and detached from her neck. The red glow faded from her eyes as, for the first time in years, she was able to think fully for herself. She stumbled and looked around herself in confusion. The last place she remembered being was Fernando's workshop in Lingote Palace, not the skyship and certainly not over La Ciudad Dorada. Fernando, that was it. She remembered him, and she remembered that the last thing that happened before her lost memories was him putting the collar on her. She roared and launched an electrical bolt at him, and although he sprang up to defend himself with his staff, it blasted the Griseous Orb clean off. The jewel fell off the side of the ship as Fernando backed against the rail.

Meanwhile, in Dorada Market, the collars on Kommo-o and the rest of the army fell off as well, releasing all of them from Fernando's control. They all had the same memories as Dragonite, so when they came around and realized they were faced with a huge group of Pokémon opposing them, they retreated in frightened surprise.

Finally, Regigigas's armor buzzed as it shut down. The individual pieces cracked and fell off the titan's body one by one, and once they were gone, it too was free.

"Well done, Adiela," Rosalita told her Rapidash, petting the Fire-type Pokémon's muzzle. Adiela replied with a content neigh before the princess returned her to her ball.

"You did a good job, too, Anton. Thanks for your help."

While Matt recalled his Rhyperior, Rosalita finally turned her attention to her defeated brother. Stepping forward with her hands planted firmly on her hips, she said to him in a grave voice, "Your ambitions are at an end, Fernando. I still want to show you mercy… but right now, the only place that is fitting for you is the dungeon."

"This isn't over," he mumbled, so low that Rosalita couldn't make it out.

"What did you say?" Rosalita demanded.

"I said this isn't over."

"Is that supposed to be a threat?" she said with a sigh. "You aren't well, Fernando. It's time to face reality - we completely stopped your invasion ourselves."

"But it's not over."

-:-

On the skyship's bridge, Eleanor leaned back in the pilot's seat. It took every ounce of her care to not put her feet up. She would have done so, but she knew to avoid accidentally hitting any of the controls.

All of a sudden, the control panels all turned a bright red color and an alarm started sounding in the room. Eleanor snapped to attention, only to discover that the systems she had just been manipulating had vanished. In their place, the control panel was projecting two images. One was of belt-like objects strapped to a giant, glowing sphere, while the other was a countdown timer that immediately started running.

"What's this?" she cautiously asked herself. She then turned her attention to the holographic navigation globe, which was projecting a map of the kingdom with an arrow pointing towards the mountains.

-:-

Matt and Rosalita had to brace themselves against some of the iron structures fixed to the skyship's deck as it abruptly began turning around.

"Rosalita, what's happening now?!" Matt shouted over the sound of the wind.

"I don't know!" she replied.

Just as suddenly as it began, the skyship finished its pivoting maneuver. As soon as it did, however, the skyship started flying away from La Ciudad Dorada, its speed increasing by the minute.

 _"Hey, guys?"_ Eleanor murmured through the radio.

"Eleanor, talk to us!" Matt called up to her. "Is there something going on?"

 _"Uh… I was gonna ask you the same thing. Somebody wanna tell me what these belt things are? Why there's a clock counting down?"_

Both Matt and Rosalita turned to Fernando, but it was the princess that spoke first. "Fernando…" she hissed, "what have you done?"

"No price is too high to protect the kingdom," he confessed, barely having the energy to open his eyes even slightly. True, absolute despair gripped every cell of his body. "I thought that if our treasures could not be protected, it would be better if they were destroyed."

"But you said you wanted a place to belong!" Matt yelled, unable to do anything else. "And you snapped when you saw the city was being destroyed! How can you say that now?"

"I wanted a place to belong before I understood what my place actually is. As I am the scorned prince, the only place I belong is ruling over the ruins left behind…"

"How can you say that?!" Rosalita pleaded with tears welling up in her eyes. "You always had a place in our home! A place with me, at my side!"

"That can never be, not now." Fernando took one limp, lifeless step forward and let his head tilt over. "As long as there were two of us, two siblings, this would always be the hand fate deals us."

"You're wrong! There never were siblings before, that's the truth!"

Fernando moved his head so it tilted in the other direction. "You do not need to try and make this hurt me any less by lying to me, Rosalita. What's done… is done. If our treasures are destroyed, the outsiders will not steal them… so I prepared a contingency plan in case I was defeated. I set a time bomb on the skyship's engine and programmed the autopilot to take it to the Golden City if the collars were shut down."

"You _what?!_ " Rosalita gasped in horror.

"You're an absolute maniac!" Matt roared at Fernando. He rushed toward the count, demanding, "Disarm it!"

"Impossible." Before Matt reached him, Fernando undid the pin holding his cape up, allowing it to fall to his feet. Underneath it, he had a flightpack identical to those Noel and Leon used. He lifted into the air and out of Matt's reach, then added, "Once it has activated, there is no stopping it. If you want my advice, save yourselves while you still can."

With that, Fernando flew off over the desert and away from the skyship. Matt briefly considered pursuing him, but he quickly realized there were much more serious matters to deal with and discarded the idea. Instead, he hurried back over to Rosalita's side.

"What do we do now?" he asked the princess, who was covering her mouth with her hand and nearly hyperventilating. "There has to be some way to stop this, right?"

There was a long, tense silence before Rosalita finally lowered her hand and replied. "I… I don't know," she admitted. Just saying those words tore her heart in half. She was soon to be the queen. She _had_ to know how to lead her people. And yet, there she was, facing an existential threat to the kingdom and unable to figure out what to do.

"What if we have Regigigas destroy the ship?" Matt suggested. He felt the urgency of the situation just as much as Rosalita did. "It certainly has the power to…"

"No, that won't work." Rosalita looked down at her feet. "The skyship's engine is an Arcane Science generator, running on the same unique energy that everything else in La Ciudad Dorada does. That is why this situation is so dangerous." The princess shut her eyes. Images of horrific destruction played through her mind, of houses, factories, mountains, temples, even Lingote Palace itself being consumed by an apocalyptic explosion. "Normally, Arcane Science energy is safe. But, if it is exposed to the flames from Fernando's bomb, a catastrophic chain reaction will occur. If it detonates on the ship's current course, the Golden City, the Fountain of Life and the entire trial path will be annihilated along with the mountains and everything living there. If we were to destroy the skyship…"

"Regigigas would cause an explosion and set the bomb off early…" Matt realized. "We're too close to La Ciudad Dorada, aren't we?" When Rosalita nodded, he rushed to say, "Can we send the skyship somewhere else, then?"

"Also not an option. If we were to even come close to detonating such a device outside of our own borders, it would be called an attack on Lapidaria and lead to the end of La Ciudad Dorada as an independent kingdom. They would be completely justified to invade us."

 _"Guys…"_ Eleanor listlessly said through the radio. _"There is one thing left I can do. Only I can do it."_

"What is it, Eleanor?" Matt asked her.

 _"I can't disarm the bomb from here. I might be able to if I went to the engine room, but there may not be enough time. It's not a sure thing. What I can do is disconnect the autopilot and send the bomb to the one place it can detonate safely."_

"Where is that?"

Eleanor ignored Matt's question and instead addressed Rosalita. _"Rosa, please, there's something I want you to do. Please let Persian, Rotom and Litwick live in the palace with you. Take good care of them, and make sure the people of La Ciudad Dorada know what I did."_

Matt failed to realize what Eleanor was implying right away, but it dawned on Rosalita instantly. "Are you sure that this is the only way?" she questioned, bringing her fist up against her breastplate.

"You're…" Matt finally understood what Eleanor was planning to do after hearing Rosalita's words. He grew emotional, yelling up at the bridge, "You can't, Eleanor! You don't have to do this! There's got to be some other way… let me go! Let me take it!"

 _"No,"_ Eleanor replied. Though her friends couldn't see it, she sadly shook her head. _"It has to be me. I'm the only one who can fly this thing… and you must continue to live, Matt. You've got a whole life ahead of you and your sister still needs you. I've never really had a place to fit in until I came to La Ciudad Dorada… if I can show my gratitude by saving it, I will not be afraid. I'm begging you, don't blame yourselves."_

"But...but…" Matt couldn't come to terms with what was happening, but deep down, he knew there was no way he could change her mind. _"Fernando wasn't happy with killing Sutter and his parents, now he has to take her life too?!"_

"I will care for your Pokémon as if they are my own," Rosalita said, staring up at the bridge with a look of sheer determination. "And I shall enshrine your tale in Doradan history for all of history. You will never be forgotten, Eleanor. I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

 _"Thank you, Rosa… now go! We're running out of time for me to get this thing outta here!"_

"But, Elea-"

Rosalita cut Matt off mid-sentence by grabbing the collar of his coat and pulling him over to Sally. She pushed him onto the Salamence's back, then said, "Sally, fly him down to the ground. I'll be right behind you."

Sally gave a short nod and grunted in assent, tiny embers issuing forth from her mouth. While the Dragon-and-Flying-type lifted off the skyship's deck and took Matt away, Rosalita sprinted over to Reyes and mounted him. She barely had gotten situated on her Staraptor's back when she saw Matt climb off Sally, intending to keep trying to persuade Eleanor that there were other options.

The princess sighed irritably and said to her Pokémon, "He won't listen. Reyes, you're going to have to take him down to the ground yourself."

Reyes cawed and lifted off from the deck with a powerful beat of his wings. He darted straight toward Matt and seized Sutter's grandson in his talons. Knowing there was no way to escape safely, he gave up and went limp.

-:-

From the bridge, Eleanor watched Rosalita leave on Reyes with Matt in tow. Sally followed, while Dragonite departed as well. Once she was alone aboard the skyship, she made her way over to the navigation globe and reached underneath it. She took all the wires running from the main console into the globe in her hand and tore them out. The projection of the ship's course vanished, and a message reading 'Auto navigation system offline - manual control' appeared in its place.

Seeing this, Eleanor dropped herself back in the pilot's chair and slipped her goggles on over her eyes. "See you later, guys," she said out loud, even though nobody would hear her.

With that, and thinking only of her friends and the Pokémon she was leaving behind, Eleanor grasped the control stick and pulled it all the way back. The skyship pitched its bow skyward at a sharp angle, and when Eleanor set all of its speed controls to maximum, it rocketed off into the clouds.

It took all the strength Eleanor could muster to keep the skyship on its ascent. She could hear the iron around her vibrating from the immense force it was being subject to, and the higher it went, the colder and thinner the air became.

"Come on…" she told the ship as she felt herself start to gasp for air as the skyship pierced through the clouds. "Come on! Don't you fail me now! Come on!"

The skyship almost seemed to reply to her, as she noticed its engine groan as she pushed it to the limit. She wasn't sure, however, if it actually had made the sound or if what she heard was merely a product of delirium as her supply of oxygen grew thin.

Yet, even as her consciousness started to slip thanks to the altitude, she felt remarkably little fear. When she told Rosalita and Matt that she never really had a place she felt like she belonged in before, she meant it.

"I'm… I'm okay with this," she said to herself. "Maybe I'll… come back in another life after all. N-now…" Eleanor realized she was shivering. "N-now, the b-best thing I c-can do… is s-save them…"

Once she noticed her involuntary reaction to the extreme cold, Eleanor felt the harshness of her environment far more than she had to that point. She could tell she wasn't going to be able to stay conscious much longer, but she also knew that once she blacked out, that was it. She would not be waking up again. Worried that she would lose control of the ship before finishing her mission, she put everything she had left into forcing it even higher.

Luckily, before she lost consciousness, the ship broke through the last of the clouds. Beyond that layer, she was granted a stunning view of the stars beyond Earth. She would never be able to make it any further into the upper atmosphere, so she certainly wouldn't be able to reach the stars, especially not in the skyship. Seeing what existed just beyond the limits of the planet, in the infinity she would soon be a part of, was good enough.

"Th-thank you…" she barely managed to utter, the brutal cold and thin air nearly consuming her. "I-If this… is the last th-thing I see… I'm so h-happy for i-it…" Her mind wandered to Matt and Rosalita back on the planet's surface. "Y-you g-guys… you were r-right… the s-stars, they truly are b-beautiful…"

Eleanor glanced slowly over to the timer, which was flickering as the skyship's systems failed. It didn't matter anymore if they were going to fail, she realized, when she saw the countdown was in its final ten seconds.

With nothing more to say, and barely enough strength to do anything, Eleanor closed her eyes and smiled. The clock hit zero, and a blinding light began to tear through the ship.

Back in La Ciudad Dorada, it appeared to those left behind as if a second sun had appeared in the sky. Sheena, Cassy, Noel, Leon, Laura, Wally, Door, Edrei, his guards, and all the other tourists and citizens watched from on and around the Sacred Hill with their Pokémon as the immense, brightly gleaming sphere shined cleanly through the dark clouds.

Matt and Rosalita, meanwhile, observed the detonation from the desert outside the city. He fell to his knees in the sand, unable to hold himself up any longer. Regigigas, Shaymin, Pidgeot, Sally and Reyes were nearby.

Whether human or Pokémon, every living thing in the kingdom turned their eyes toward the sky with the full knowledge that Eleanor's sacrifice saved them. It was an act that connected them all together in gratitude.

 **END of CHAPTER 8**


	10. The Meaning of Gratitude

Well, the climax is done. Now we can finally begin winding down, but don't think things are over just yet…

-:-

 **CHAPTER 9:** The Meaning of Gratitude

-:-

Eleanor's sacrifice brought a decisive end to the war Fernando's actions instigated. In the hours following her death and the count's disappearance, a newfound sense of peace settled in over La Ciudad Dorada. The clouds overhead seemed to recognize this and left the sky, allowing the evening sun to bathe the desert kingdom in its warm rays of hope.

Exhausted by the time it spent subjugated to Fernando's will, Regigigas made its way back to its place of rest in the Golden City. Matt and Rosalita followed it there on Sally and Reyes with Shaymin accompanying them, and once they arrived, they waited for Cassy and Sheena to catch up with them. There was still work left for them to do.

"This place is as amazing as everyone said," Matt quietly told Rosalita as they walked together toward the Fountain of Life at the heart of the Golden City. He stopped and lightly set his hand against one of the golden pillars, which like all the others was glittering in the setting sun. "I'm glad we made it here."

Rosalita glanced over at Matt, and her lips curled into a slight frown. Even as her own nerves over what was to come made her scratch at her palms, she could read him like a book. Everything, from his murmuring speech to his slacking posture, gave away just how distressed he was over Eleanor's fate. He'd been that way ever since her act of sacrifice, and the princess shared a look of mutual concern for him with Shaymin. She didn't put it into words, but what had happened weighed heavily on her mind, too.

 _"When we are done here,"_ she thought to herself, _"we must do something to lift our spirits. We all need it…"_

Just then, the pair could hear a voice overhead. "Look, there they are! Matt! Rosalita!"

Matt and Rosalita looked up to see that it was Sheena, sitting behind Cassy on Swellow's back, who had called out to them. Cassy tapped Swellow's shoulder and guided him to land in front of the pair.

"Are you alright?" Cassy hastily inquired, tightly clutching her bag. Her feet weren't even on the ground before she started her question. Matt turned away and didn't answer, leading her to grow visibly angry. "What did Fernando do to you now?" she demanded, her words coming out as a hiss between her gritted teeth.

"Nothing, not directly to him," Rosalita answered for Matt, earning her a glare from Cassy that she ignored. "We won the war, but not without loss."

It was then that Sheena spoke up. She'd been surveying the area since landing and was growing more confused by the moment. "Where is Eleanor?" she asked. A chill ran across her skin from Rosalita's statement and the subconscious realization it fostered.

No answer came from either Matt or Rosalita, leading Cassy to begin piecing the truth together. She lowered her head, causing her bangs to cast a shadow over her eyes. "What happened to her in the end?"

"Fernando had a timed explosive strapped to the engine of the skyship," the princess explained in a manner devoid of emotion. She simply felt too drained to do anything more than turn her sad, partially-closed eyes to Cassy. "Eleanor gave her life to fly it to an altitude at which its detonation would be safe."

Sheena gasped in horror when her friend's fate was confirmed. They hadn't known each other for long, but in their few days of traveling in La Ciudad Dorada, they'd grown close.

The priestess brought her right hand to her mouth and bit at one of the fingers of her white glove. "Eleanor was having such a good time on our adventure… she was looking forward to seeing you take the throne, too, Rosalita… and now she's gone…"

"There's nothing we can do to bring her back now," Cassy bitterly noted, turning away from the others. "All we can do is see this through to the end. It's what she would have wanted us to do."

"You are correct," Rosalita concurred with a tired, sad sigh. "We must press on… come, let us head to the Fountain of Life."

A painful, uncomfortable silence settled over the remaining members of the expedition as they continued down the path leading straight to Regigigas's throne and the Fountain of Life. Even though they weren't yet at the titan's feet, its immense size made it easily visible to them as they trekked toward it.

Shaymin, floating behind its human allies, had plenty on its mind but no knowledge of what it should put into words. _"Should I reassure her that everything will work out okay here?"_ it thought. _"Promise to help her find Fernando? Just… let her know Eleanor's in a better place? What should I do?"_

In what was perhaps a lucky coincidence for the mythical Pokémon, it felt a strange sensation. It looked down and quickly noticed that there was light radiating from its body, which prompted it to then turn toward the sky. The sun was dropping below the horizon, Shaymin realized, and it knew what was about to happen.

"Rosalita!" it called out, making the group pause and look back at it. Her name was the last word it could manage before the light completely enveloped it.

"Oh, Shaymin…" Rosalita said, making her way over to her lifelong friend and partner. The mythical Pokémon morphed back into its Land Forme and plopped to the ground, sneezing when it landed. "I'm sorry, I forgot all about this."

"Don't worry yourself, yes?" Shaymin's more timid speech pattern made Matt realize just how used he'd gotten to the brashness of its Sky Forme. The Grass-type contentedly nestled itself in Rosalita's arms when she picked it up. "It is not important right now. What is important is fulfilling the final part of the trial of succession, yes."

"That is right…" Rosalita's armor creaked on her when she drew in a deep breath and exhaled to steel her nerves. "That is right," she repeated. "We're almost there. Everything will be done when this is finished."

The princess wasn't joking when she said they were almost at their destination. She only had to lead the group for a few more minutes before the pathway they were on gave way to a spacious square not unlike Dorada Market, a similarity that was not lost on any of her companions.

"Instead of the Sacred Hill, though, there's Regigigas…" Matt observed. His comparison was quite literal, in fact, as the titan on its throne stood at a roughly equal height. Regigigas easily dominated everything else in the area, and could have flattened the humans standing before it without even getting up. It was then that Matt truly appreciated just how powerful the titan really was.

He wasn't the only one feeling such a way. Sheena and Cassy, having stayed behind at the Sacred Hill during the battle, hadn't yet gotten to see Regigigas up close. Its commanding presence, even at rest on its golden throne, cowed them both into nervous silence.

Rosalita was on edge, too, but not due to Regigigas like the others. "Where is the Fountain of Life?" she asked the Pokémon in her arms.

"Right there," Shaymin replied, jabbing one of its pudgy arms straight ahead.

As it turned out, there was an ornate golden fountain sitting just in front of Regigigas. Rosalita and the others had completely missed it thanks to how thoroughly the titan dwarfed it. Realizing her fate was finally at hand, the princess dashed the rest of the way to the wellspring, leading Matt, Sheena and Cassy to follow her there.

"So this is it," Cassy said, carefully looking over the finely carved curves of the fountain. The sacred nature of what was about to happen wasn't lost on her or any of the others. "What people throughout history have searched for here…"

"I still can't believe my grandfather drank from it…" Matt adjusted his glasses, which were still sitting awkwardly on his bandaged face. _"It's the fountain that ended his life, too…"_ he mentally added, recalling the reason for Fernando's first crime.

Rosalita carefully leaned down to set Shaymin on the edge of the empty, dry fountain, never taking her eyes off the Gracidea-shaped statue at its top. "Everything in my life has been leading to me standing here…" she breathlessly said to herself. The pieces of her armor were clinking together from her trembling, but even though she heard the noise, it didn't register to her. She was too preoccupied with the deluge of memories flooding through her mind, memories of herself, her parents, Fernando and Shaymin. All the friends she'd made along the way. Everything she'd lost. "All the expectations placed upon me by those who have walked this path before… and all the promises I've made…"

Suddenly, Regigigas began beeping and its seven dots started to flash.

"It's still awake!" Matt exclaimed, thrusting his arm in front of Sheena and Cassy despite being unsure of what it would do to protect them. "Get back!"

"Wait," Sheena gently said. She clasped her hands together, but did not recite the chant to activate her powers. "Right now, I can feel Regigigas's intent without even connecting to its heart," she told him, anticipating what he would ask. "It is not going to attack us… it's completely peaceful."

"I wish you would have mentioned that earlier," Cassy sarcastically remarked. "It scared me out of my skin."

Rosalita had been looking over her shoulder after she heard Matt yell, but returned her attention to Regigigas when she saw that they were aware of the titan's benevolent nature. She knew it all along. There was nothing for them to be afraid of, not when they had done nothing wrong to earn Regigigas's wrath. It was Fernando and Fernando alone who was to blame for everything.

When that thought entered her head, Rosalita felt a chill run through her body, but she swiftly suppressed it. _"Now is not the time to be concerned with him."_ With that, she raised her arms up to Regigigas. She didn't do so in a ragged, hysterical fashion like Fernando had done. Instead, she simply bowed her head in respect and brought her hands toward her kingdom's great protector as an act of true supplication.

"Regigigas, I am Rosalita Renata the First, the blood of Fernando VII and Sophia," she said to the giant. "I humbly come before you to accept the responsibility bequeathed to my father and the men before him. Grant me the power of the Fountain of Life so that I may lead La Ciudad Dorada with the wisdom of true gratitude."

Regigigas beeped again, then did something that even caught Rosalita by surprise - it spoke. "We welcome you, our successor," it replied to her in a voice that sounded like many different people all speaking at once. "You have passed the trials of the Three Pillars and proven yourself worthy of inheriting our crown."

"What's with the way it's talking?" Matt quietly asked Sheena, hoping she could shed some light on the situation. "Why does it sound like a lot of people at once and why is it referring to itself as a collective?"

"I can't tell." Sheena shook her head. "I couldn't connect with it now if I tried. Something's blocking me out."

Somehow, Regigigas heard their exchange. "Grandchild of Professor Sutter Chiaki, our overseer. We are those who have come before. Those who have become a part of Gaia. We thank you for standing alongside our heir as your grandfather did for us."

"You're welcome, Regigig-" Matt cut off his expression of gratitude when he realized how Regigigas had identified itself. His mouth fell open as he asked, "Those who have come before, who my grandfather stood alongside…? Are you…?"

"It cannot be," Rosalita flatly said. Despite her words, she badly wanted to believe her interpretation of the titan's speech was correct. "Regigigas, how can you be those who have led La Ciudad Dorada if you were here before we were? If you really are them, allow me to speak to my father!"

"I am merely Gaia's vessel, in addition to being your kingdom's protector." Rosalita and the others understood this to be Regigigas referring strictly to itself, but the princess cocked her head, still confused by what she was hearing. "We… we are those Regigigas carries within." At that point, the many voices within Regigigas's collective began to fall away until only one remained. "I've waited so long to see you here, Rosalita."

Rosalita's eyes widened when she heard the one voice with which Regigigas now spoke. "I-it… it cannot be…" she whispered in shock.

"Allow me to come out and see you."

Regigigas raised its right arm off the side of its throne and spread its fingers, a green glow surrounding each of the three digits on its hand. The titan's gesture caused veins of gently flowing green light to radiate from the ground throughout the Golden City, originating from the Fountain of Life.

"What's this?" Cassy demanded, looking around with a sudden sense of panic. One of the waves of light approached her, and although she jumped back, it still washed over her.

"Cassy!" Matt shouted fearfully.

"It…" Much to her surprise, there was nothing more than a warmth inside the light. "It's actually really warm and comfortable… it feels good."

"Warm and comfortable?" Matt blinked when he realized he was feeling the same sort of sensation. "I think I feel it, too…"

"This must be Gaia's flow…" Sheena posited. "The life energy of the earth and all living things…"

"Regigigas, I do not understand!" Rosalita called up to the giant. "What are you doing?"

Regigigas did not answer the princess's plea. Instead, the individual voice that had last spoken to her addressed her from a particularly intense flare of Gaia energy nearby. "Now we can see you with our own eyes once again, Rosalita."

The princess pivoted around so fast that she nearly slipped and fell on the stones under her sollerets. Two human figures appeared within the flare, their features initially obscured by its gleam. With each step they took toward Rosalita, they became more and more recognizable until they finally emerged from the energy entirely, and as soon as Rosalita could clearly see them, her already wide eyes filled with tears. Every inch of them both was indelibly etched into her memory, from the man's striking resemblence to an aged version of her brother to the glistening blonde hair and stately poise she inherited from the woman.

"Mother… Father…?" she stammered as Fernando VII and Sophia stood before her. She didn't entirely understand how or why they were there, but her overflowing emotions kept her from thinking about it very much. It hadn't been all that long since the last time she saw them, but to her, it felt like forever. Rosalita threw herself into her parents' arms, and she started to cry. "Mother! Father! You're here! I don't… how? Why?"

"We wouldn't miss our princess's big day for anything, Rosalita," Sophia told her, gently patting Rosalita on the head.

"We have seen all your exploits," her father added. "Everything you and your allies did on the way to this point. You have made us and our ancestors proud."

"But… but…" Rosalita was only becoming more overwhelmed by getting to see her parents again. "Fernando killed you both… and you're here…"

"Just like those who have come before us, when our lives end, we become a part of Gaia." The fallen king smiled proudly at his daughter as she looked up at him. "In a sense, this is our immortality. One day in the future, you will join us here, but for now… your place is in the world of the living, as Queen Rosalita. Regigigas let us come here to witness you ascend the throne."

Hearing her name with the title of queen only overwhelmed Rosalita even more, but she managed to stop weeping. "I have made so many mistakes on the way here… do I really deserve it?"

"Leading with wisdom does not mean being flawless," Fernando VII assured her. "A wise leader learns from their errors and becomes a better leader for them. And you recognized that you could not take all of this burden alone…" He gestured with his head toward Matt, Sheena and Cassy, who were dumbfounded by what they were seeing, before finishing, "That shows me that you are already wise beyond your years."

"Yes, you are correct, Father. They have helped me so much…"

"Would you introduce us to your friends, Rosalita?" Sophia requested, setting one of her white lace gloves against the brooch on her crimson dress.

"I would be delighted to." Rosalita led her parents over to her three allies, who were still staring slack-jawed at the sight of the resurrected royals. "Mother, Father, please meet Sheena Carnet, Cassy Natsuka and Matt Chiaki."

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintances," the previous queen greeted them. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart for caring for my dear daughter."

"It's no big deal, really…" Matt replied. His attempt to downplay his involvement earned him an elbow in the side from Cassy.

"Matt…" she muttered irritably, "...how many times do I have to remind you to show proper respect?"

"Oh, no, it is fine," Fernando VII chuckled. "I understand you may not be used to our customs. It is no matter." The fallen king's upbeat nature soon grew more grim. "Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for my son. He has harmed you all, but perhaps you most profoundly, Matt Chiaki."

Fernando VII put his hand on his chest and bowed his head to Matt, making both Matt and Cassy step back in surprise. Cassy was shocked that the king would show a commoner such respect.

"On behalf of the entire House of Fernando, I apologize for my son's murder of Sutter Chiaki." Fernando VII lifted his head back up and continued, "You should know he spoke highly of you and your sister. I rarely saw or heard that man light up as much as he did when he discussed you. It was his sincere belief you would accomplish great things as the heirs to his work."

"I-I…" Matt stammered, thoroughly overwhelmed by what he was hearing. "Thank you, but… Amanda really deserves it more than I do."

"Nonsense. You proved yourself as you walked this path, just as Rosalita did." While Matt shrank back and tried to process his emotions, Fernando VII turned to Sheena and Cassy. "I should not disregard you two, either. I can only hope your fine work here has given you each something invaluable to take away."

"Oh, it definitely did," Cassy said, almost reflexively. She didn't elaborate until she realized the questioning gazes of those around her had turned her way. "I mean, I prefer studying, so getting to read all the books I did… that's something I don't get to do every day."

"I came to La Ciudad Dorada hoping to learn more about my peoples' connection to this land," Sheena added, her voice serene and content. "Just by speaking to you, your highness, I now know that a major teaching in our beliefs is true."

"What do you mean?" Matt asked her.

"Many Tenganist sects believe that when someone passes from this world, they become a part of the flow of Gaia. Just by having the king and queen here before us… we know it's true."

"There is someone else…" Rosalita spoke up before catching her error. "Or I should say there _was_ someone else. Eleanor Laplace was an engineer interested in our Arcane Science, and she sacrificed herself to ensure our survival."

"We know." Outside of Fernando VII's sight, Rosalita's allies looked at each other in confusion, unsure of what to make of his statement. "Rosalita, you must never forget those who have departed your world. Their wishes become a part of those they leave behind."

"I understand, Father." Rosalita's face hardened into the look of determination Matt and Sheena knew so well. "I already plan to memorialize Eleanor right away upon taking the throne."

"That is a just course of action, Rosalita. I applaud you." Sophia frowned and glared at the palm of her right hand. "To think our son destroyed so many lives and came close to destroying La Ciudad Dorada itself, all for his hatred of outsiders."

"Mother, please forgive me for saying this, but you are wrong." For the second time, Matt, Cassy and Sheena all felt their mouths fall open. None of them could believe she was breaking with her mother in such a way.

"Rosalita, explain yourself," Fernando VII firmly said.

The princess's resolve barely wavered in the face of her father's challenge. "I am sorry, Father. I know how this must sound, since you and Mother are only here because Fernando killed you." She stopped to briefly consider what she said. "It is so confounding to think about how you are here… regardless, I do not think Fernando did this all out of hatred. I believe him when he said he only wished to understand his place in our kingdom. We didn't try enough to help him understand why his ideas were wrong because we ourselves were making mistakes. We all failed him, and that is my judgment as the kingdom's next leader." Recalling her father's words, she repeated, "Leading with wisdom does not mean being flawless. A wise leader learns from their errors and becomes a better leader for them."

"Rosalita…" Fernando VII's expression softened, and behind him, Sophia smiled in delight. "You learn quickly. I am proud of you."

"It is true," Sophia picked up from her husband, "while we were a part of your world, we did not fully understand things ourselves. There is so much one learns when they join with those who came before."

"You're right," the king agreed. "We now know what we should have known in life, and what we needed to help your brother. Unfortunately, for us, it is too late."

"So that responsibility falls to me now," Rosalita realized. Her breath grew short as she turned to look at the fountain and Shaymin. The weight of her position was back on her mind. "And there's something I must do in order to take on that responsibility."

"That is correct, Rosalita." Fernando VII stepped forward and placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder. She could feel his touch through her armor. It was strangely warm, as if he were still truly alive. "From that day so many years ago, when we summoned you to the site of the first Gracidea and Shaymin selected you, this has been your destiny. Your time has finally come." Turning to the mythical Pokémon, who was still sitting on the edge of the fountain, he called out, "Shaymin, it is time! Bring forth the waters of the Fountain of Life with your Aromatherapy!"

"Yes," was all Shaymin said in response.

 _"How fitting that it says that now…"_ Matt thought to himself. He watched Shaymin scale the fountain, not noticing until then that its finely carved arches formed a convenient path for Shaymin to climb.

When it reached the top of the fountain, Shaymin settled into the center of the Gracidea statue and started to glow. Veins of light worked their way down the fountain, eventually heading underground. A few seconds passed before crystal-clear, pure water erupted from the fountain, flowing from numerous points all up and down its statue. It radiated with the same glow of Gaia energy as the rest of the Golden City. The mythical Pokémon then jumped from the fountain and bound over to Rosalita's side.

"Go forward, yes?" Shaymin urged the princess, who had frozen in place staring at the pristine, shimmering water. She knew what kind of power it held and what it meant for her, and although she had mentally prepared for it, seeing the water underlined how real everything was.

"No, I have to do this," she said to herself, taking another deep breath to reinforce her nerve. She took one slow but decisive step in the fountain's direction, followed by another. "Just one step at a time…"

"Rosalita, stop!"

The peaceful scene was suddenly interrupted by a shrill shriek from the sky overhead. Rosalita paused and turned her head upward, an action the others all also took. They were just in time to see a disheveled-looking Fernando land and discard his flightpack.

"Have you not had enough already?" Cassy snarled at him. Matt and Sheena nodded in agreement as they glared at the count. "Go away!"

"I… I cannot. I cannot leave." Fernando shakily moved forward, his head tilted and his arms hanging limply at his sides. "Rosalita, I cannot allow you to take that power. Not before I know the land's judgment of me… not before I know if I still have a right to be here after all I have done."

"Fernando Renato the Eighth, cease this at once!" his father commanded, the king's booming words echoing off the golden buildings around them. "You have done enough!"

"Father?!" Fernando gasped in horrified surprise. Spotting Sophia nearby, he exclaimed, "And Mother, too? You can't be here!"

"But we are here, Fernando," Sophia said, trying to speak in as gentle a manner as possible. "You have a place, you always have. It is in La Ciudad Dorada with Rosalita."

"No, no, no!" Fernando grabbed his head with both hands and shook it back and forth. "It's about far more than that now! This cannot be real… I must be hallucinating. That's it. I'm imagining what Mother and Father would say to me, of course."

"You are wrong, Fernando!" Rosalita boldly declared. His abrupt arrival had shocked her, but she swiftly decided to take charge of the situation. It was what a leader would do. "Mother and Father are very much real, and they speak the truth." She pressed her hand against her breastplate and implored, "I want you to come home with me, Fernando. This is my decision as both your sister and your queen."

"I cannot!" Fernando violently rejected her. Seeing his parents and the pleading look in his sister's eyes had caused all the shame he felt for his actions to intensify anew. "There may be nowhere I can go after what I have done. You cannot make that judgment, Rosalita. Only the kingdom can decide my fate!"

"Fernando, it is up to those in the world of the living to determine their own fates."

Ignoring his father's advice, and still dismissing the king's presence as a trick of his broken mind, Fernando dashed for the fountain. _"I must drink from it… then I will know the answer…"_

With every step he took, Fernando felt his long-held dream getting closer. All he had to do was get to the fountain. Once he drank from it, he'd have the answer he sought for so long. He just had to make it a little further, and and he would know.

And then, as soon as it started, his sprint ended. Rosalita grabbed him from behind in a tight embrace, holding him with all her strength. He could feel all his momentum evaporate nearly instantly.

In his surprise, Fernando looked back over his shoulder and sputtered, "R-Rosalita?"

"There is so much I could say to you right now," she murmured. "Indeed, there is. But what I want to say to you right now is… I'm sorry, Fernando."

Those three words shook Fernando to his core. "What have you to be sorry for?" he quietly asked her. "After everything I have done, I don't deserve-"

"It does not matter!" Rosalita interrupted, tightening her hold on her brother. "I failed you, Fernando. We all did. I never showed enough gratitude for how much you love our kingdom. If I had stopped being so self-absorbed with my training for the throne, I could have given you the hand you deserved in finding your place. To think I neglected you after you helped me become the person I am… it disgusts me to my core!"

Listening to Rosalita lay such blame on herself broke Fernando's heart. He went limp in her arms, feeling all his strength evaporate as he finally understood how badly he had hurt her. His beloved sister, the one who he had protected from their childhood, was blaming herself for _his_ crimes. His murders. His treason. Ultimately, even his endangering La Ciudad Dorada's survival. She was telling him she felt disgusted with herself, but deep down, he knew _he_ was far more disgusted with _himself_ for making her feel that way in the first place.

"Rosalita, are those your true feelings?" he asked her while staring blankly up at the late evening sky.

"They are," she replied.

That was it, the answer Fernando felt he had to hear. He'd hurt her far too much, and there was no forgiving that.

"You know, Rosalita," he said, "I have always admired your will. Even when your confidence flags, you never stop pursuing what is right. You have always had the strength to face your fate head-on."

"I have only done what is necessary." Rosalita let go of Fernando, and he turned around in time to see her hold out her hand. "Right now, doing this is what I deem necessary. I should have given you this hand many times in the past. Please let me make up for my failures by giving it to you now."

"You always were the stronger of us. Even now, you prove that to me." Fernando slowly started to reach out to his sister. "You truly are able to make your own answers to life's questions, no matter what."

Rosalita smiled in relief. "Thank you." Just before Fernando's fingers met Rosalita's, however, he paused. Still believing in him, she said, "I know this is difficult for you to come to terms with. Come, we will face this challenge together. We'll face _all_ the challenges the future holds together."

Behind the princess, Matt had a different read on the situation. He shared a worried glance with Sheena and whispered to both her and Cassy, "Something's wrong."

"You are strong enough to make your own answers…" Fernando repeated, "...but the truth is, I am not."

With that, Fernando changed the angle of his hand and shoved it into Rosalita's breastplate, making her gasp in horror as he pushed her away from him. Once the one obstacle to his quest was removed, he made it to the edge of the Fountain of Life.

"Don't do it, Fernando!" Sophia called out after him.

Ignoring his mother as a figment of his imagination, Fernando dropped to his knees and plunged his head into the shimmering water. _"Finally! Finally, I will know the truth of my existence!"_ he mentally rejoiced, opening his mouth to take one big gulp of the fountain's bounty.

Rosalita ran up behind him and yanked him out of the fountain by the collar, but by then it was too late. Fernando had already swallowed the water. He looked upon his sister, their parents and their equally horrified audience in satisfaction.

"What have you done, Fernando?!" Rosalita shrieked, equally furious and appalled. "What have you done? Was everything I said meaningless to you?!"

"No, of course not. And if it helps you feel better, I meant everything I said, too." Much to her surprise, Fernando tightly hugged her. "I had to know the land's judgment of me. That has no reflection on you. As I said, I could not live with the torment of not knowing." The count let go of his sister and stretched his arms out, looking over them curiously. "I believe I have my answer… I do not feel anything, even though I managed to drink from the Fountain of Life..." Fernando put his arms down and sighed in resignation. All his years of work had finally come to an end, but not the end he had hoped for. It saddened him, but he also felt a burden lift from his shoulders. "That proves beyond any doubt that you are the true heir, Rosalita."

"You absolute fool!" she angrily reproached him. "Even though I must bring you back home to face justice, I know there must be a future for us. We promised each other we'd be the best leaders La Ciudad Dorada ever had, remember? I would still value your advice, even now. I should have let you know that years ago. I'm sorry, but you did not have to do this!"

"There was no other way," Fernando said, sadly shaking his head. "As twins born to the royal bloodline, it was always fated that one of us would be cast aside."

"But it did not have to be that way!" Rosalita desperately protested. "I told you, the historical account of the war was falsified! There never were any siblings before us, so there really was no reason for us to be divided the way we were. There can still only be one ruler, but we _can_ work together for the kingdom!"

The count dismissed his sister's claim with a wave of his hand. "Thank you, but you still do not need to try and mislead me. There was simply no other way besides hearing through Gaia whet-"

Fernando was suddenly seized by an unseen force, cutting him off mid-sentence. He entered a trance-like state and stiffened from head to toe as Rosalita backed away from him.

"What's wrong?" she nervously questioned him. When he gave no reply, she lashed around to their parents, who were watching in mournful silence. "What is happening to him?!" the princess demanded in panic.

"No way is he really the king after all," Cassy uttered. "I refuse to believe that."

"No…" was all Fernando VII could say. "No, he is not."

Rosalita, Matt, Cassy and Sheena all stared at the younger Fernando, waiting for something to happen. None of them had any idea of what to do, and with the king and queen remaining silent, they knew nothing about what was really happening. The one thing all four of them could conclude was that something was undeniably wrong. Fernando's limbs had twisted into unnatural angles no human could maintain so rigidly without hurting themselves, but his face conveyed no pain. His expression remained fixed in an inscrutable state, with his wide eyes glaring toward the sky but plainly looking past it, as if he were trying to see something beyond.

"I saw it…" he suddenly uttered, a single tear rolling down his cheek as he broke from his trance.

"W-what?" Rosalita stammered, unprepared for him to speak.

" _I saw it_ …" Fernando listlessly repeated. At that, the force locking him in place released his body all at once. He fell backward against the side of the fountain, unable to hold himself up. "I saw the truth about everything, about the grandson of Fernando the Great, his betrayal of his heir, about the war…"

"How?" his sister asked. She wanted to say that he should have listened to her, but those words were lost when she looked down at the emotional wreck sitting at her feet.

"I don't know!" Fernando cried out, meeting Rosalita's gaze and allowing her to see that his one tear had become many. His body and mind were burning with the knowledge that had just been seared into him. He felt like he wanted to tear off his shirt to get at what was underneath, but also go even further beyond that, ripping his flesh from his bones if that was what it took to exorcise the soul-crushing shame that was claiming him.

Fernando VII and Sophia drew closer to the siblings with Matt, Sheena and Cassy following, but they remained at a fair distance. "The Fountain of Life shows those who drink from it that which they need most to see," the king informed both his children and their audience. "It was so for myself, and for all those who came before me."

"Then it was not my place that I most needed to know, but the reality of what I was doing…" The younger Fernando drove his fist into the ground in anguish. Nearby, Shaymin hid its face behind the grass on its back, itself ashamed by what its lies had led to. "What have I done, Rosalita? I became the very thing we swore we wouldn't! While you kept your word all this time, I broke it!"

"It might hurt that you broke one promise we made to each other," Rosalita tried to reason, " but we can still keep others. It's not over."

"The fact that I hurt you in such a profound way is exactly _why_ it's over," he argued. "Not just you, but Mother, Father, all the people of La Ciudad Dorada and those who tried to help it… Shaymin sacrificed its conscience to ensure our family and our subjects would live peaceful, rich lives in ignorance of the past, and all I did was take it for granted. I see that now with perfect clarity…" Fernando turned his head away from his sister. "I deserve nothing less than to be stripped of my name and exiled from this land of gratitude, seeing as I have shown none for what it gave to me."

"Well, I am not doing that," Rosalita flatly declared, taking Fernando's hand in her own. "If this is what it takes to get you on your feet and moving forward again, consider it an order from your queen. I command you to return to La Ciudad Dorada with me."

Fernando said nothing, but he offered no defiance when Rosalita tried to pull him up. His silence was why, when she found herself unable to get him to stand, she became confused.

"Come on, Fernando, don't fight me. Stand up."

What she didn't expect was for him to be equally confused. He fell back against the fountain again and looked down over himself with his eyes narrowed and lips pressed together.

"Rosalita, I'm not doing this. I can't move my legs. I… just can't." On top of his legs being immobilized, he suddenly started feeling lightheaded. "Something's wrong," he said out loud, his tears abruptly ceasing. "I do not feel right."

The princess opened her mouth to speak, intending to try and extract further information from her stricken brother on his condition. Any words she could have mustered died off in her throat, however, when she glanced over Fernando's body for herself. Her eyes went wide in terror once they settled upon Fernando's feet.

Not only his extremities themselves but the boots he wore over them had transformed into gold. The same genuine gold the ancient Doradans had assembled the city around them and all their other riches using. It was creeping up his legs, too, slow and yet unrelenting in its progress.

"What's happening to him now?!" Rosalita fearfully demanded of her parents. "What in Shaymin's name is _this_?"

"I am afraid there is a way the Fountain of Life prevents those not deemed worthy from claiming its power," Sophia grievously informed her children, "even if they manage to drink its waters."

Matt found himself unexpectedly remembering something he had nearly forgotten. It was a seemingly minor piece of information he had seen during their adventure, but he now realized its true meaning. "But beware, for the bounty of gratitude shall only be reaped by the worthy," he recited, recalling the message on the monolith at the Golden City's gate. He covered his mouth, muffling his voice somewhat. "All others shall face the wrath of Gaia."

"Gaia gives bountiful life to those who use it with wisdom," Sheena added, her own dread over what she saw taking place keeping her voice soft. She felt disconnected, as if she thought everything wasn't real despite her senses and education telling her otherwise. "But if used unwisely, it will instead drain life away."

"I refuse to accept that." Rosalita's facade of bravado masked a darker realization, one that she knew deep in her heart she had to face even as badly as she wished not to. She turned her green eyes to Regigigas, but they were not full of the intensity that so characterized both siblings. They were watery, although Rosalita didn't realize it. "Regigigas, I beseech you, stop th-"

The princess gasped when she felt her brother seize her wrist. She already knew what he would say, but silently prayed she was wrong.

"No, Rosalita, don't…" he weakly urged her, and in an instant, her heart sank. Her prediction was right. "This… this is how it should be."

"Says who?!" she protested, in full defiance of reality. "There is not a single person with the right to decide this for us!"

"This was the fate that befell the third king when he betrayed our kingdom." Nearly the entire length of Fernando's legs had turned to gold by then, and he was growing delirious. "I have c-" Fernando paused to cough. "I have committed such profound crimes… not just against La Ciudad Dorada, but against you, Rosalita. It may be hard to believe, but right now, that is what hurts me the most, now that I have seen the truth… this is justice for what I have done."

"How… how can you say that?" Rosalita's face curled, her emotional veneer starting to crack. "None of your actions could hurt me more than having to face the future we promised each other without you…"

Much to Rosalita's visible surprise, Fernando summoned all of his ebbing energy to reach out to her. She gasped and her eyes went even wider when she felt his hand touch her cheek.

"Be strong, Rosalita. Be like you always have been." Fernando laughed softly to himself, but halfway through, it turned into another cough. "What a fool I truly am… to think I believed you would surrender the throne. That I forgot your compassionate nature is backed by a will of the strongest iron. You have never wavered in your strength, even in times of doubt. By standing so resolutely against me in order to serve the kingdom's best interest, even when surrendering would have been so easy… it is truly inspiring, Rosalita."

"I only did what I had to…" The princess put her head on her brother's shoulder, not noticing how her entire body was shaking. "Why did all of this have to happen? Why did that threat ever have to arrive?"

Fernando gave no response, and a blanket of quiet despair settled in over the Golden City. Sophia, unable to watch her childrens' anguish any longer, buried her face in her husband's regal robes. She had never forgotten the day they were born, the offspring of a king and a royal minister's daughter. The queen had once thought that fairytale dream she lived would last forever, a fantasy that now seemed to cruelly mock her with how it had shattered. For his part, Fernando VII could offer Sophia nothing but unspoken support. Even he was moved to tears by the generations of tragedy now unspooling all at once in front of him and being inflicted upon his beloved children.

Seeing their grief, Shaymin padded up to Fernando VII and Sophia. "I apologize, yes…" it said to them. "This all happened because I lacked faith in the people who gave me a home. I failed you."

Behind the royals, even Matt, Sheena and Cassy - those most targeted by Fernando's campaign - found themselves caught up in the overwhelming sadness of the circumstances. While Sheena held her hands together in silent prayer, it was Matt of all people that spoke up.

"Even after everything he did…" Matt recalled the day he saw Sutter's body. He still hated Fernando for taking away the only real parental figure he and Amanda had, but it was that bond he shared with his own sister that overrode all his other emotions about what he was now seeing. "They didn't deserve this…"

"I'm surprised to hear you say that," Cassy chimed in.

"Well, it's how I feel," he insisted.

Cassy said nothing further, and silence again settled in among those gathered at the Fountain of Life. What seemed like forever passed before Fernando broke that veil by speaking up again, his voice even weaker than before.

"Hmph… how ironic that only now do I realize what my place truly is."

"What?" Rosalita felt her breath catch in her throat. She lifted her head from Fernando's shoulder to stare at him face-to-face and asked, "What are you speaking of?"

"What a fool I was not to see the truth sooner…" When Fernando failed to immediately answer her question, Rosalita shook him by the shoulders. That act snapped him back to reality, and after coughing, he said, "No matter what our customs say or don't say about siblings, there is no way around the fact that only one of us could take the throne. Rosalita… I did so much to you, fought you with such ferocity… and yet, you walked through the flames and emerged unscathed on the other side. If there was any doubt, that erased it… you are the leader La Ciudad Dorada deserves. My place… was always to be the stepping stone for you to reach that exalted position."

The soon-to-be queen found her stomach turning from what she was hearing. What little remained of her strong facade was starting to give way, and she had to sniff to stop herself from crying right then and there. "Calling yourself nothing but a stepping stone… after everything that I've said, how can you still place such little value on your life? Can you not see how important you are?"

"On the contrary… this is what gives my life value." Fernando tried to raise his arm up to touch his sister's face again, but found himself unable to; the corruption was working its way up his torso and limbs. "The fact that my life could be used to elevate one such as you, to fully forge you into a warrior who will fight for our kingdom until the very end… I am at peace with that."

"But… Fernando…" Rosalita froze when she caught sight of the gold replacing her brother's upper body. She was initially too overwhelmed to react, but that soon gave way to a state of sheer panic. "No, not yet! It cannot be this way! You can't go and leave me here to-"

"Hush," he softly urged her, flashing her an incredibly weak but content smile that only devastated her even more. "The kingdom's future… it is bright. Be strong, Rosalita. Be strong and lead it into that future… let them all see that strength that I know. In the end…" Fernando paused. His glittering petrification was nearing his neck, telling him time was short. "...even if I became your enemy, I fulfilled our promise after all… with the aid I've given you, you shall be the greatest ruler La Ciudad Dorada has ever seen…"

That was it. There was no way Rosalita could maintain her composure any longer. "You still are the brother I always knew, nobody else…" Tears flowed freely down her face, and she sobbed, "Th-thank you, Fernando… I'll keep my word to you. I'll always keep it…"

"I… give you my gratitude as well, Rosalita…" The count felt his neck start hardening, and knew his throat would soon be next. Summoning the last of his strength, he looked straight into Rosalita's eyes. "I… I thank you, Rosalita… for standing alongside me in this life. It was… quite a fascinating one. Thank you for… being my sister."

Satisfied that he had said everything he wanted to, Fernando closed his eyes and smiled. He could hear Rosalita's weeping grow stronger, but he had faith in her. If he hadn't lost his speech, he would have told her that while she might find things too painful to deal with in the moment, she would persevere. There was nothing she couldn't do, he firmly believed, and with time, she would come to understand. If it meant elevating Rosalita and the kingdom to even greater heights, he was at peace, truly believing that even his own life was an acceptable price to exchange.

When he expressed his gratitude for her, Rosalita froze. A barrage of images from their past flashed through her memory, reminding her of all the time they'd spent together. Their cheerful playing in the garden atop the Sacred Hill. The first time their parents took them to meet the people they would one day lead. All the years of dedicated, almost obsessed preparation they shared for their future. How even after their individual interests started to diverge, they still supported each other, with Rosalita attending the plays Fernando created and his watching her compete with Adiela. Each memory only pushed her further into despondence, but one stood above all the rest: the two of them, still just children, sitting in the garden and watching one of La Ciudad Dorada's legendary sunsets.

"Why could you not see that you were always more than just a tool for the kingdom?" she whimpered. "You never needed to be anything besides my brother… nothing had to change for us, we only had to be the same people we always were… it never had to come to this…"

It was at that point Rosalita stopped speaking and just watched as the golden transformation claimed the last of Fernando's body, pushing over his nose and soon engulfing his entire head. Every inch of him had become the precious metal. Nothing remained of the human being he once was. Rosalita had tried to fracture herself from what was happening with all her might, but there was no denying it anymore. Count Fernando VIII, her beloved brother, was gone.

" _Why?!_ " she cried out anew. Rosalita threw her arms over the newly-formed statue's shoulders and sobbed directly into its chest. "Why did _any_ of this have to happen?"

Behind her, Fernando VII and Sophia held each other even more tightly. Even as a spirit, the king could feel himself slumping. "Look at what has become of our children…" he uttered in despair. "I failed them as both a king and as a father. I should have done something to prevent this…"

"It's already too late," Sophia sadly pointed out. "The time for us to intervene would have been many years ago… there is nothing we can do now but bear hope for Rosalita's future…"

"I don't know how she can do it…" Matt bitterly said. He, Sheena and Cassy had stepped out from behind the royals, but he was the only one of them who spoke. "Look at how many lives have been torn apart by this catastrophe."

"A catastrophe it is," Fernando VII agreed, hanging his head.

"There must be something we can save, yes?" Shaymin piped up. The mythical Pokémon bound over to Rosalita, who was still crying on the petrified body of her brother. "Rosalita… please…"

"This all happened because nobody really knew what to feel gratitude for…" The princess's words cut Shaymin to the bone, but it knew she was right. "So much of our history was wrapped in lies… he fought for something that was never real. The lying has to stop or future generations will be caught in this same tragedy for a third time…"

"I agree with you, yes," Shaymin emphatically said, forcing its sense of guilt aside temporarily. "The right time would have been when your grandfather discovered the truth, but I do not believe it's too late."

"I wish… I wish Fernando could have known just how important he really was… but…" Rosalita had arrived at a conclusion. A soul-crushing one, but a conclusion nevertheless. All she had to do was resolve to follow it, just as Fernando IV had struggled with his decision to lie centuries earlier. If Fernando IV's falsehoods had been crossing a line in the name of peace, she reasoned, what she wanted to do would hopefully allow the kingdom to step back behind that line. "The people deserve peace, and we've seen that lying to them only pushed the conflict off onto a future generation," she finally declared, sniffing and trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. What she had to say next was more painful than anything she could imagine, but it was a necessity. "I cannot… there is nothing I can do to restore Fernando's life now. All I can do is take his wishes and the stories of those who cannot go into the future onto my own shoulders… I… I must untangle all the lies and lead the people through this turmoil into the peace that waits beyond it."

As her parents, Shaymin and Matt's group watched, Rosalita rose back up. The loss of Fernando weighed on her, as did Eleanor's sacrifice and all the destruction Fernando's campaign had wrought. Yet, she could feel her brother's will giving her the strength she needed to push back against all the adversity. He had been completely sincere in his wish to save La Ciudad Dorada, she firmly believed. How he wanted to accomplish that was where the problem lay.

"Even with all your crimes, I thank you, Fernando," Rosalita quietly said. "You showed me what my rule must be about. You may be gone, but…" Just saying those words made her pause, but she quickly recovered. As sad as it made her, she had to move on, to reach that future so cruelly denied to so many others. "I swear, you will live on with me."

Shaymin plodded closer to the princess, nudging a dish-shaped lilypad with its nose. Numerous flowers had sprouted from its back, the product of Rosalita's expression of gratitude. "I take it that you are prepared, yes?" it asked her.

Rosalita eyed the glimmering water in the Fountain of Life, and for an instant, she hesitated. _"I just saw that water drain away Fernando's life and transform him into a statue…"_ she contemplated, a drop of sweat rolling from her brow even though the desert air was beginning to cool. _"If I were to consume it as well…"_

Sensing Rosalita's consternation, Shaymin assured her, "Remember, the bounty of gratitude shall only be reaped by the worthy. You are worthy, yes."

"You are correct," she replied, composing herself. Rosalita could feel the expectant stares of her parents on her, but they weren't the only ones placing their hope in her. Every single man, woman and child living in La Ciudad Dorada was trusting that she would continue the kingdom's peace and prosperity, as so many generations of leaders had done before her. _"There is no way I can let Mother, Father, or any of them down,"_ the princess mentally resolved.

Glancing over her shoulder, Rosalita saw that her parents, Matt, Cassy and Sheena were all watching her with anticipation. None of them said anything, so she turned back to the fountain. She picked up the lilypad Shaymin brought to her, then inhaled and closed her eyes.

"Fernando, Mother, Father, Eleanor, Professor Chiaki… all of you, I will take your stories into the future with me. In that way, all of you will live on. I swear it." At that, Rosalita puckered her lips and gently exhaled through them before peering down at the fountain. _"There is no reason to delay this…"_

The princess slowly and deliberately lowered herself to her knees in front of the wellspring. Nestling the lilypad carefully with both hands, she dipped it into the water before raising it back out. Rosalita stopped to stare at the modest amount of liquid it held.

 _"The future of my home and its people all relies on this,"_ she thought. _"I mustn't hesitate any longer."_

Rosalita brought the lilypad to her lips, and despite her resolve, hesitated for the briefest moment before tilting it back and ingesting the water.

"What happens now?" Matt nervously asked. Like when Fernando drank from the fountain, nothing appeared to occur at first for Rosalita either.

"Wait," Sophia urged him.

True to the former queen's word, within seconds, Rosalita shot up like a bullet, standing completely straight and staring at the sky while the lilypad went flying from her hand. Both Matt and Sheena gasped in surprise, and Matt went to run to Rosalita, only for Sophia to hold him back by putting her arm out.

"This is how it always is," Fernando VII informed them. "None of us should interfere. What she will see is for her to experience herself."

Matt shrank back, his mind not entirely at ease. "If you say so…"

Rosalita remained unaware of what was going on behind her. She rigidly stood with her arms spread wide, seemingly transfixed on Regigigas. In that moment, however, she couldn't even see the titan. Regigigas, Shaymin, the Golden City and her parents and friends - for her, they had all vanished into thin air.

While her body was still, her mind brought her to a place far away. She found herself at the foot of what she recognized as the Sacred Hill. La Ciudad Dorada was also nowhere to be seen, a community of modest canvas tents sitting in its place.

"I've never seen the Sacred Hill so bare…" Rosalita observed. True to her comment, it was just a huge accumulation of dirt, completely devoid of any life. The way she knew it, even the hillsides had flowers growing from them.

While she pondered the Sacred Hill's state and the presence of a tent village in her hometown's absence, she overheard people conversing. Nearby, there were two farmers in light canvas clothing talking to a third, older man whose presence forced a surprised gasp through Rosalita's lips. She recognized him instantly, thanks to his shaggy, golden hair, thick beard and the gnarled staff he carried. There was no way she wouldn't, not with how many times she had seen his face before.

"My ancestor…" she said to herself, "Fernando the Great…" Seeing the revered first king helped Rosalita make sense of many of her questions. "This vision, it is what La Ciudad Dorada once was…"

One thing she didn't yet know was why she was seeing a fantasy of those times in the first place. She considered trying to ask one of the three men, but when one of them looked right at her and didn't react, she concluded that they couldn't see her. She changed tactics, walking closer so she could better listen to them. As she drew nearer, she saw one of the civilians poking at the ground with a wooden tool. A Zebstrika, Camerupt and Ursaring waited with them, while Fernando I's Delphox was at the future king's side.

"I'm telling you, Chief," the man reiterated to Fernando I, jabbing the earth again in frustration, "the land's giving us nothing."

"Have a look," the second farmer added. "Ursaring, show him."

Rosalita quietly watched the Ursaring hand a burlap sack over to Fernando I, who passed his staff to his Delphox before taking the bag. She identified the plant he pulled from it as the Lapidarian Topo, a foodstuff native to the region. The berries on its root were horrifically shriveled, however, so much so that Rosalita barely recognized them. She'd never seen a Topo plant in such a state. A healthy Lapidarian Topo bore firm, pink fruit, not the withered, brown offshoots she was looking at.

"This is the state of your entire crop?' Fernando I asked as he examined the dehydrated, dead root. When the farmers nodded, he grimaced. "We won't last very long before our food reserves fall into a state of depletion..."

Circumstances did not allow Rosalita the chance to think about what she was seeing, for as soon as her ancestor spoke, reality warped around her once again. Days, weeks and months sped past her like a video being run on fast forward. Sunrises followed sunsets, over and over, until the princess's mental trip through time came to an abrupt end, dropping her off on top of the barren hill. A veil of darkness hung over the desert settlement, furthering her anxiety as she looked around. There were only two people with her on the peak. Fernando I was there with his Delphox, having not changed at all in appearance since she last saw him. The supposedly immortal wanderer was there as well, and it both his presence and the single Gracidea planted in the dirt that confirmed to Rosalita where she was.

"The founding of La Ciudad Dorada…" she marveled. Rosalita wished that she could interact with the two legendary figures from the past, but she had to resign herself to her inability to catch their notice. She instead watched as the wanderer approached the edge of the hill, his Lucario and Golisopod following behind him.

"Hear me, people of this blighted land!" he thundered to the villagers, who were gathered at the foot of the Sacred Hill. His deep and commanding voice made a chill run down Rosalita's spine, even in her ethereal state. "Reach deeply into your hearts and find everything you can feel gratitude for! This will give the Gracidea the ability to restore life to your home!"

Though she could not see the villagers from where she was, Rosalita knew enough about history to anticipate what would happen next. She followed the wanderer and his Pokémon back over to the Gracidea, which had already started flickering with a exponentially intensifying golden light. As the glow grew stronger, wind began gusting around the Gracidea, sending both the wanderer's cape and Fernando I's ragged robes fluttering. Nearby, Delphox, Lucario and Golisopod shielded their eyes from both the light and the gale accompanying it.

"Gardener of Gratitude, these people call out to you!" the wanderer shouted, raising his hands into the air. "Even as the gifts of Gaia's energy have left them, they speak words of gratitude for what they still have! I beseech you, bringer of purity, hear their cries and bless them by saving this land!"

Rosalita swore she could have been the Gracidea actually move in response to the wanderer's plea. A beam of light shot from it up into the sky, while at the same time, pulses of green energy flowed through the earth from where the flower was planted.

"Gaia's energy…" she whispered in awe. Seeing the creation of her home first-hand, a tale she long believed to be nothing but a fixture in history books, deeply moved her. Even though she was well aware that her presence could have no effect on the events playing out, she felt compelled to bring her hands together and express gratitude herself. "Thank you for giving me such a wonderful home, and thank you for giving me the family I received… thank you for my friends and my people, and for letting us all live in peace and comfort…"

A silhouette appeared in the beam of light and slowly descended toward the Sacred Hill. Its shape was at first murky and indescribable, but as it got closer, its features became more defined and there was no mistaking what it was. The canine body, long ears, scarf and jagged tuft of hair all confirmed that it was Shaymin in its Sky Forme, appearing in La Ciudad Dorada for the very first time. Seemingly as a herald of the mythical Pokémon's arrival, an even greater wave of Gaia burst through the Sacred Hill, causing grass and flowers to erupt from its surface en masse.

Just as suddenly as it had come, the vision of La Ciudad Dorada's creation fell away, returning Rosalita to reality. Regigigas, the Golden City and the Fountain of Life all reappeared before her, overwhelming her senses and making her fall down next to the statue that was once her brother.

"Rosalita!" Sheena cried out. This time, there was no keeping Matt's group separated from her. Both he and Sheena pushed past Rosalita's parents and rushed to her side, Cassy following soon after. While she and Matt helped Rosalita stand back up, Sheena asked, "Are you alright? What happened?"

At first, Rosalita said nothing. She gradually opened her eyes, revealing to those around her a soft, almost imperceptible glimmer in them. When she finally spoke, it was to Fernando VII and Sophia. "Mother, Father… I had a vision, just as Fernando did."

"What was it, my dear?" Sophia wondered.

"I saw the state of desolation our land once fell into…" she described. Before continuing, she gently freed herself from Matt and Sheena's grasp and took a single step forward. "And then, I saw Fernando the Great and the wanderer bringing life back to our home and turning it into La Ciudad Dorada. I… I get it now. I know what I have to do…" As she so commonly did, Rosalita pressed her fist against her chest. This time, however, the compassionate smile so indicative of her true nature crept onto her face. "Everyone's lives were so simple in the beginning of our kingdom… so peaceful and prosperous. They never needed all these lies to feel gratitude… now, more than ever, I know that I must have faith they can accept difficult truths and move forward into the future. I can… I can feel myself connected to everyone who's come before me now. I know I am right."

"It is more wonderful than I ever could have imagined to see you embrace your responsibility…" Sophia praised her daughter.

"Yes, I must agree," Fernando VII added. "I am so, so proud of you, Rosalita. You have come so far and grown so much… there is only one thing you are incorrect about."

Rosalita cocked her head, surprised by her father's words. "What is that?"

Fernando VII smiled more broadly than Rosalita had ever seen him smile before. "It is not our kingdom anymore, it is yours. Our time is over now. As of this moment, you are no longer Princess Rosalita, you are Queen Rosalita the First."

Rosalita's eyes watered up once again, but it was not sadness swelling within her, it was pride. Pride in her accomplishments. Pride in the fact that her parents and seven hundred years of predecessors had faith in her to carry on their legacy. And just as importantly to her, pride that she would get the chance to fulfill her promise to her late brother. Overcome with joy, she threw her arms around Fernando VII and Sophia.

"Mother, Father, thank you!" she beamed. "Thank you for everything! I shall honor you with all that I do, I promise!"

"You already have," Sophia said as she stroked the top of Rosalita's head anew, "many times over."

The royal family's shared embrace was interrupted by Regigigas's beeping. Fernando VII turned upward and contemplated the kingdom's great protector as its dots flashed.

"Rosalita, our time together is unfortunately at an end," he revealed, understanding what Regigigas was indicating. "Now is when you must go into the future, where we are unable to follow. I implore you, always be strong."

"I will," the newly-crowned queen replied. She felt no more fear or despair. Her newfound connection to her ancestors helped her replace those worries with a sense of hope. "I gave Fernando my word years ago, and I shall give it to you as well. For now, though… might I walk with you and Mother one last time?"

"Of course," he said with a nod. "Let us go."

Rosalita joined her right hand with her father's left, and vice versa with her mother. The three of them then made their way toward a particularly intense flare of Gaia energy that had appeared. As they walked, Rosalita couldn't help but think of all the times they had done exactly the same when she was a child. Her memories of those times in Lingote Palace, the garden and La Ciudad Dorada brought a wistful smile to her countenance. Her sadness over how that chapter of her life was at a close had declined significantly. The memories would always be there, with Fernando and their parents living on within them.

When they reached the precipice of Gaia's flow, Fernando VII and Sophia separated from their daughter and turned around to face her.

"Well, this is it." The former king chuckled awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry... as prepared as I was for this day, I did not think about this part very much."

"You don't need to be so straightlaced, Father." Rosalita gave his shoulder a playful push. "It is not something to be worried about right now."

"There's that wisdom of yours again," Fernando VII said to her. "I know everything shall be safe in your hands."

"He's right, Rosalita," Sophia added. "We gave you all that we could to prepare you, but what truly matters is what you do on our own. I have great confidence in you."

"Thank you, Mother." The new queen bowed her head in respect to her predecessor. "I will make the two of you proud."

"I know you will." Fernando VII glanced back up at Regigigas for a brief second. "We will meet again one day. For now, Rosalita, take care of yourself and our home."

"I will," Rosalita declared, fully accepting her role. "Mother, Father, I bid you farewell!"

"Goodbye, dear," Sophia replied.

Rosalita and her parents waved goodbye to each other as the flare of Gaia enveloped the royal couple. Soon, they were gone, along with the warm energy flowing through the Golden City. She could instinctively tell that with their exit, the coronation ceremony was over. Something she had considered a vague 'tomorrow' for years had finally come.

"Queen Rosalita the First…" she said to herself, considering her new station in life. "It sounds… right."

Shaymin, meanwhile, scampered up to its companion after stopping the Fountain of Life's waters. "Now that things are up to you, what will be your first act?" it inquired.

Rosalita scratched her chin and pondered Shaymin's question for a moment before picking the mythical Pokémon up. "I must address the people as soon as possible and inform them of the truth," she decided. "We shall return to Lingote Palace at once to begin preparing."

"I will do whatever I can to assist, yes," Shaymin promised, sagely nodding as it spoke. "This all happened because of me. I must help fix it."

Rosalita pet Shaymin's back, and flowers popped out of it as it curled up in her arms. She then turned to Matt, Sheena and Cassy, and as soon as she did, Cassy got ready to jab Matt with her elbow yet again.

"You should kneel wh-" Much to Cassy's surprise, both Matt and Sheena had already dropped to one knee in deference to the new queen. With her intended reproach rendered useless, she shook her head and laughed instead. "Took you long enough," she sarcastically said to him as she knelt herself.

"You may stand," Rosalita informed the three after making her way over to them. "I will inform the guards that you are to be granted quarter in the palace. There is much work to be done, so we must return right away."

-:-

Back in La Ciudad Dorada, Edrei was supervising his subordinates in their cleanup of the fire-ravaged garden atop the Sacred Hill. As he watched the other guards remove the remains of the scorched plants, he scowled and clenched his staff tightly in his right hand.

 _"This is all just foul,"_ he bitterly thought. _"So many years of life, wiped out in the blink of an eye…"_

The captain's mind wandered back to his own childhood spent upon the hill. As the son of the previous guard captain, he too had grown up in Lingote Palace and played among those flowers as a boy. Custom dictated that he and the royal siblings of similar age were not to mingle, owing to their dramatically different stations in life, but all three defied that tradition. He became Rosalita and Fernando's closest non-relative friend, but as they got older, their duties started to diverge. Ironically enough, that divergence ultimately pushed Rosalita back into his orbit when she asked to train with him. At the time of her request, she still believed Fernando would be king and wished to join the guards so she could act as his personal knight in accordance with their childhood promise. It was that training, which she elected to continue even after being named crown princess, that played a big part in her building up both her physical strength and the power of her Pokémon.

As he reminisced, Edrei absentmindedly looked at the Key Stone set in the back of his gauntlet. He'd inherited both it and his Pidgeotite from his father. _"I let you both down,"_ he thought, gazing up at the sky. _"Father, I failed in my duty. I do not deserve this position or to call your precious items my own… and Rosalita, I am ashamed I doubted you. I know you better than that..."_

"Captain Edrei!" one of the women in his squadron called to him, snapping him out of his daydream.

"Yes, what is i-" He stopped mid-sentence when he spotted most of his subordinates clustered around one of the elevators with their staves drawn. Fearing that the war was not yet over, he sprinted to join them, the individual pieces of his armor clanging together as he ran. "Move, let me see!" he ordered the guards.

When the group split to afford him a view of what had them so alarmed, he was greeted by the sight of Noel and Leon with their hands in the air.

"Yo, you the boss of these guys?" Noel asked him, correctly perceiving his higher rank at first glance. She put her left hand on her hip and scowled, as she so often did. "Wanna tell 'em to back off a lil' bit?"

"Why would I do such a thing?" Edrei countered. "I know who you are. What kind of fool do you take me for?"

"We made a deal with Princess," she explained. "She said she was gonna take us in when all was said and done, so here we are." When Edrei seemed reluctant to believe her story, Noel crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "I ain't stupid, I know how these stories usually go. The knight in shining armor who keeps the princess safe has a crush on the girl he's gotta keep secret 'cause tradition says so, but he'd do anythin' at all to please her." Noel opened one eye and raised her finger. "How much of that was right? All of it? Do it for her."

Edrei's face had flushed before Noel even finished speaking. Somehow, the roughneck from Orre had read him like a book. He couldn't admit that, though. Instead, he tried to ignore Noel's taunts and sputtered, "Wh-why should I believe you?"

Noel gave Leon a playful smack. "'ey, Bro, I was totally right."

"You said it, Sis. Dude's as red as a Spelon Berry!"

The siblings shared a hearty laugh at Edrei's expense, and he was too flustered to do anything about it. His subordinates picked up the slack by brandishing their staves, an act that cut Noel and Leon's mirth off.

"Whoa, calm down!" Leon exclaimed, putting up his hands in a defensive posture. "We ain't doin' nothin'!"

"Do all of you got brains made of the same metal you're wearin'?" Noel said with her usual scowl. "If we were gonna do anythin', we woulda did it already. And if we were gonna run, don't you think we woulda instead of comin' and helpin' you all?"

"That does make sense…" Edrei conceded. Turning to the other guards, he ordered, "Take them into custody. We'll sort this out when Rosalita returns."

"Wait, just wait one minute!" Noel yelled at them when they moved in to detain her and Leon. "We got a demand!"

"Why does that not surprise me?" Edrei sighed. "You are in no position to demand anything right now."

"Is it really so hard to keep Bro and I together?"

Noel's question gave Edrei pause. The idea that all she wanted was to stay together with Leon was the last thing he anticipated hearing her say. "You… what?" he stuttered.

"Yeah, I don't wanna get anythin' else. Bro and I've been together since we were little squirts on the streets." She looked up to her brother, who smiled at her. "That ain't endin' now."

"Fine," the captain acquiesced, "there's no reason I should say otherwise."

-:-

Late that night, Rosalita was walking down a hall on Lingote Palace's top floor with a lantern in her hand to light the way. Her soft, pink slippers made not a single sound as she ambled along the corridor's red carpet.

Things had been very busy once she returned home with Matt, Sheena and Cassy in tow. Immediately after giving Edrei the order to allow her three surviving allies to stay in the castle, she had to deal with the issue of Noel and Leon's detention. Edrei had still harbored doubts regarding their account of their bargain with Rosalita, so her confirmation of their claims caught him by surprise. They were less than thrilled to have to spend a full night in the dungeon, but grudgingly accepted their situation when she told the guards to treat them as guests.

After that came an impromptu meeting with the nobles who acted as advisors to the crown. Raul's earlier communication with his fellow court members saved Rosalita a significant amount of time in convincing them of what had taken place. She made certain that all of her aides were on the same page before tasking them with making arrangements for her address to the people of the kingdom. Such an event required much coordination, so they went about their work as soon as she ordered it.

It wasn't until all that work was done that Rosalita finally got a chance to try and unwind. The day was won, and now she could rest. Being able to remove her armor and take a long, hot bath was a relief after all the stress she'd faced just in the last day alone. She even almost fell asleep in the water while one of her handmaidens washed her hair. Ironically enough, when she actually tried to go to bed, restlessness kept her awake. Her plush sheets and airy nightgown did nothing to help her.

That was why she was in the hallway at such a late hour. It led to one of her favorite places, the palace's observatory. She approached the grand doors that marked its entrance and paused to appreciate the intricate golden lines sprawled across them, which depicted a sky full of shooting stars above a single Gracidea planted in the Sacred Hill.

"How wonderful," she said to herself before pulling one of the doors open. The carvings had always been one of her favorite works of art.

Beyond the threshold was a sizeable chamber lit by lamps hooked on the walls. Its most notable feature by far was the giant glass dome that hung overhead, affording a spectacular view of the stars above the remote desert kingdom. Much to Rosalita's surprise, Matt and Sheena were there, the latter using one of the observatory's ornate telescopes while the former sat at a table in the center of the room, quietly drawing in a sketchbook. Both turned from what they were doing when they heard the door open.

"Oh!" the new queen exclaimed when she saw her friends. "I did not expect to see you two here."

"I could say the same for you," Sheena replied, leaving the telescope and making her way to the table where Matt was. "Is something wrong, Rosalita? You should be resting for tomorrow."

Rosalita fidgeted. "I know, but… to be truthful, I could not sleep. There is too much on my mind."

"Let's talk about it, then," Sheena suggested as she pulled out a chair for herself. "What has you worried?"

Even though a seat was available for Rosalita, she was initially reluctant to take it. "I know I said I am ready to take on my new responsibilities, and I am… that is not a lie. But…"

"But?" Sheena questioningly repeated.

"I do harbor some concern that with all the duties I now have, I will lose everything already dear to me." Rosalita turned away from Sheena and grimaced. "To tell the truth, I am scared. Everything that lies ahead for me is so different from my life to this point. The more I ponder that unknown, the more uneasy I become, and I must face it alone."

"No, that's wrong. You aren't alone." Sheena reached across the table and took Rosalita's right hand in her own, making the newly-crowned queen look back at her. "I won't lie and tell you that what's ahead of you will be easy. It won't be, but you aren't ever facing it alone. Besides Matt, Cassy and I, you're going to have the people of La Ciudad Dorada behind you. Shaymin said you lived as one with the people, unlike your private ancestors. They know you and who you are. There's no need for you to turn yourself into someone else. Just be who you always have been, and everything will be okay."

"Sheena…" Rosalita was so moved by Sheena's words of reassurance that she felt herself nearly tear up again, but she kept that swell of emotion in check. "...thank you. I think… I think that was exactly what I needed to hear. You are correct… I cannot afford to lose who I am, not for my sake or for the people who will place their faith in me. If I were to become the same as my parents and those who came before them, all I would be doing is perpetuating the cycle that led us all here. I remember something else Shaymin said now."

"What's that?" the priestess wondered.

"It said it chose me _because_ I am different from my ancestors. Because I've lived with the people and I know their lives on a personal level. That's why I was chosen instead of Fernando, who would have simply maintained the status quo…" Coming to this conclusion made Rosalita feel sad about Fernando's fate yet again, but it also bolstered her confidence. As much as she mourned her brother, she'd accepted that there was no way to undo what had happened to him. "The only way forward is to embrace the future with my own hands, not those of anyone else… and those who couldn't go with me must not be forgotten. I understand now… all of this happened because of lies told to maintain a false peace, so I am here to unravel those lies and lead La Ciudad Dorada into real peace…" Cheered up by her newfound certainty in her purpose, Rosalita placed her left hand on top of Sheena's. "Sheena, thank you. Thank you so much for helping me figure that out."

"You're welcome," Sheena replied with a smile. "I'm proud of you. You'll do great, I'm certain of it."

"If everything happens for a reason, I'm fortunate I got to meet you, Matt and everyone else. Thank you." When she said his name, Rosalita realized Matt had remained completely silent during her entire exchange with Sheena. He was still sitting there on her left, quietly drawing in his sketchbook. "Might I ask what it is you are working on?"

Matt didn't answer immediately, and when he did, he spoke in a low voice that bordered on a mumble. "The stars in La Ciudad Dorada's night sky," he revealed while remaining fixated on the paper. "I took up painting because one day, I hope I might figure out some way for Amanda to see again." Matt stopped drawing and subconsciously ran his fingers over the bandages on the left side of his face, tracing along the edges of his own damaged eye. "I've been painting things I want her to see, and, well…"

"You need not say any more," Rosalita said, seeing his obvious distress. "I sincerely hope you succeed in restoring her sight. Even if you do not accomplish that goal, I still would like to meet her. Please consider coming back to La Ciudad Dorada with her one day."

"Maybe…" Matt replied, continuing to avoid Rosalita's gaze.

-:-

By mid-morning the next day, La Ciudad Dorada was abuzz with anticipation. The royal advisors had spread the word of the upcoming royal address on Rosalita's order, but absent any significant detail, it gave rise to significant speculation regarding the event's nature. All the secrecy practiced by past generations only stoked the conjecture further.

Among the hordes gathered at the Alliance Battle stadium for the address, there was certainty that they would hear the reason for Regigigas's appearance and the attack of the brainwashed Pokémon. That much was obvious. Rumors abounded when it came to the particulars. Word even started to circulate that a transition of power had taken place, inducing much consternation among a wide swath of the kingdom's population. The raids on Lingote Palace and the city walls led to the word 'coup' being thrown around, although there was disagreement on whether such subversion had succeeded.

Such worries were the farthest thing from Rosalita's mind as she made her way down the hall connecting Lingote Palace to the arena. She knew, after what Sheena told her the previous night, to have faith that everything would work out. Clad in red-and-white robes fringed with gold, she carried herself with the same poise she so admired her mother for as a girl. Her clothing, created specifically for her by her handmaidens from the finest silk and quickly finished in time for the address, glistened in the sunlight flowing through the hall from the full-length windows lining it.

As she walked, Rosalita reached to her chest and gripped the pendant she wore. It had previously belonged to Sophia like her rings and other jewelry, but the pendant carried special significance to her. It was made of a ruby with gold set into it in the shape of Shaymin's Land Forme, and Rosalita had always been dazzled by it. She was fascinated by it even before she was old enough to fully understand why adults wore jewelry, and the first day Sophia let her try it on was a memory she still treasured. Back then, it didn't fit on her at all, but now it suited her perfectly.

 _"Mother, please look upon me and smile,"_ she thought to herself while clutching the pendant. Her mind then wandered to the golden, jeweled crown sitting on her head. It had been specifically made for her, just like her robes. Despite that, she still felt it carried the weight of her father's legacy as king. _"You too, Father. I will go my own way, but I will never forget to honor the path you both guided me along to get here."_

Shaymin, who had been walking alongside Rosalita, dashed ahead of her once they could see Edrei waiting for her at the end of the hall. "You are ready for this, yes?" it asked its friend and partner.

"I have never felt more prepared than I do right now," Rosalita replied. "My head is clear. I understand my obligations, and I know I am still myself. This is what I was born to do."

"Most excellent!" Shaymin happily exclaimed. "The road here hasn't been an easy one for either of us. I must say, this has been a humbling experience, yes… I have made many mistakes myself. Together, we must fix them."

"I agree," the new queen said. Shaymin jumped up into her arms, and she scratched its cheek. "When we are done here, I will get you cookies."

Shaymin became so excited it nearly leapt right back out of Rosalita's arms. "Cookies?! Now I almost wish for your speech to go quickly, yes!"

Rosalita couldn't help but laugh at the mythical Pokémon's innocent enthusiasm. They arrived at the end of the hall soon after, where a heavy red curtain separated her from the royal family's viewing balcony in the arena.

"Queen Rosalita," Edrei greeted her, trying with all his might to remain perfectly composed and at attention.

"Captain Edrei," she responded with a smile, "thank you for your diligent service."

There was so much Edrei wanted to say to her. Both had ended up following in their parents' footsteps, and even though he knew it would one day come, actually seeing Rosalita as queen overwhelmed him. All he could actually put into words was, "I am just fulfilling my duty. Please wait here for your introduction."

"Again, let me extend my gratitude," Rosalita said to him. In that moment, such a sentiment was all he wanted. He bowed to her, both as a gesture of respect but also to hide the pleased smile that stretched across his face.

Rosalita, Edrei and Shaymin soon heard horns blaring on the other side of the curtains. Upon their sound reaching her ears, Rosalita put Shaymin down on the ground and brushed her hands across the front of her robes.

Her time had come.

-:-

Outside, Matt, Cassy and Sheena had front-row seats on the battlefield as the trumpeters backed up. Rosalita had arranged for their accomodations at the event, informing the guards that they were to be considered special guests. They glanced around at their surroundings as the people of La Ciudad Dorada fell silent thanks to the horns' fanfare.

"I guess things are getting started," Sheena observed.

"You can say that again," Matt added, adjusting his sky-blue necktie. It, like the white dress shirt, dark green slacks and matching hat he now wore, had been given to him to replace the ragged coat Sheena salvaged from Registeel's fortress. A new, lighter coat in the same green color lay folded on his lap.

Sitting between Matt and Sheena, Cassy fidgeted nervously in her seat. Matt failed to notice her, but the priestess did. "Are you alright?" Sheena asked her.

Cassy's immediate, involuntary reaction was to tighten her hold on Swellow's bag, which she had taken to wearing herself. Before she could give any sort of verbal response, a man clad in red military garb stepped forward, taking up a position right at the center of the field.

"Now presenting the new ruler of La Ciudad Dorada and the master of Lingote Palace," the man announced, "Queen Rosalita the First!"

The silence in the arena was broken as quickly as it came, giving way to applause and cheering as Rosalita entered through the curtains. She calmly walked to the edge of the balcony, where a microphone was set up for her address, but waved to her people instead of starting to talk right away. Their enthusiasm despite the confusing, dramatic events surrounding her accession to the throne buoyed her hopes that everything would turn out alright.

"Surely you have much to say to them, yes?" Shaymin urged her after pulling itself up onto the balcony's railing.

"That is right…" she replied. When she approached the microphone and prepared to speak, Rosalita found herself seized by a sudden rush of nerves. Her audience really was comprised of _her_ people now. Their peace, their prosperity, all of it rested squarely on her shoulders. She started to sweat, but then remembered the connection to her predecessors she had gained. As soon as she thought about that, she could almost feel her parents and brother on the balcony with her, encouraging her to keep going. That helped Rosalita center herself again, and she took a deep breath to calm her mind before beginning her address.

"My friends, much has taken place in our beloved kingdom of La Ciudad Dorada recently. Many of these events may have left you frightened, worried that perhaps the wonderful state we have long lived in will wither away and die. I am here to give you my word that such an event will never happen. I have faith in you all that you will work side-by-side with me to ensure our peace survives forevermore. With that said, I have discovered what took place in La Ciudad Dorada over the past several days is the end result of many generations' worth of lies being told. These lies were told in the name of peace, but tragedy has now visited our land twice due to them, and as your new leader, I am putting an end to them once and for all. What binds us all together is our love of La Ciudad Dorada, so these secrets are no longer necessary to keep us together."

Rosalita exhaled and looked over at Shaymin before continuing her speech. The mythical Pokémon was grimacing in guilt, but there was an unspoken understanding between them that what Rosalita was about to do was necessary.

"Let us first begin with the raid on La Ciudad Dorada that occurred yesterday. That attack was the work of my brother, Count Fernando VIII." A faint murmuring erupted among the crowd at this news, and Rosalita had to internally acknowledge how much it still hurt her. Still, there was no turning back. "After I was chosen to inherit our father's throne over him, Fernando grew despondent, as he believed that he did not have a reason for existing. More recently, a message threatening La Ciudad Dorada arrived, and Fernando wished to awaken Regigigas to repel this threat. When he was spurned, Fernando murdered our parents and framed me in the hopes that his gambit would lead to him taking the throne."

"I wonder if revealing that so soon was a wise idea," Matt said to Sheena and Cassy when the murmuring around them escalated dramatically.

"Please, there is still much more to be said," Rosalita pleaded with the crowd, harboring the same concerns as Matt. "Fernando held back and allowed me to pursue the trials of the Three Pillars, as all Doradan rulers must do in order to officially be crowned. He then ambushed us in the Golden City and placed Regigigas under his control using Arcane Science technology. That is why Regigigas attacked La Ciudad Dorada. The Pokémon army that you so courageously united with visitors to our kingdom to fight against was also a part of Fernando's strategy. Luckily, I was not alone in standing against this threat from within."

Rosalita looked down from the balcony and locked eyes with Matt, making him nervously lower his hat over them.

"As a part of his plan, Fernando enlisted Matt Chiaki, the grandson of the great explorer Professor Sutter Chiaki, to act as an unwitting pawn in searching for the Golden City. Matt, along with his partner Cassy Natsuka and friends Eleanor Laplace and Sheena Carnet, aided me in foiling Fernando's plot once they learned the truth. Their names will go down in Doradan history as pivotal allies who prevented the second civil war from destroying our kingdom and everything we have held dear. However, I must call special attention to one of them in particular."

Closing her eyes, Rosalita thought about Eleanor's Persian, Rotom and Litwick, the new residents of Lingote Palace. One of the hardest things she'd had to do the previous night was inform them of their beloved trainer's fate, news that they took as hard as she had expected them to. All three remained hidden in the room Rosalita had given them for almost the entire night, with the only indication of their coming out was the empty food dishes left in front of their door.

"Eleanor Laplace was an engineer who hailed from Orsay City in the region of Kalos," Rosalita stated to her people, her heart sinking anew as she thought about what happened. "She possessed an innate understanding of machines, even those powered by our Arcane Science designs. Like my other allies, Eleanor fought with her entire heart and soul for La Ciudad Dorada's survival. However, at the decisive moment, Fernando activated a time bomb aboard the royal family's skyship, which would have destroyed the Golden City, its surroundings and everything living there. Eleanor sacrificed herself to carry out an act of heroism only she could perform, by piloting the skyship into the atmosphere so the bomb would detonate safely. I will… I urge you all to join me in honoring her memory. Our kingdom would not survive in the form we have always known if Eleanor did not lay down her life for us."

Rosalita had to stop and sniff back a tear.

"She was not the only life lost during Fernando's campaign. At the end, Fernando threw himself into the Fountain of Life, the source of our leaders' longevity, in a desperate bid to determine his place in La Ciudad Dorada. Because he was unworthy of the fountain's power, Gaia inflicted a harsh judgment upon him. His life was forfeit, and his body transformed into a golden statue… the true tragedy of this all is that he feared being cast aside as my twin, as our history would suggest must happen. This is the great lie I have discovered. When our first civil war took place, it was not between King Fernando III and his twin brother, as has been taught to generations of Doradan citizens. King Fernando III betrayed our traditions and attempted to attain true immortality by imprisoning his own son along with Shaymin."

At that, the murmuring in the crowd returned with a vengeance. Such a turn of events didn't surprise Rosalita at all. As the truth about the civil war was something she anticipated would provoke a reaction, she'd already steeled herself to carry out the revelation.

"That is correct," she continued. "The first civil war was fought between Fernando III, his son Fernando IV, and the forces loyal to each. It only concluded when Regigigas awoke and consumed the Gaia energy giving Fernando III life. Once the battle was over, Fernando IV decided he would spread the lie that an unknown twin brother caused the war out of fear the people would lose faith in our leadership right when La Ciudad Dorada was still a nascent nation. While I understand why he did this, we have reached a time in our history where this lie is no longer needed. We must walk hand-in-hand together into our shared future, and no longer be shackled to a false image given to us by the past.

Because we must reach that future, I am hereby announcing the following measures. First, the royal family will no longer conceal the Golden City. We will form a council of knights to act as its protectors, and then open it as part of La Ciudad Dorada's historical tour. The mining community in the desert and abandoned fortress in the mountains shall also be restored, all so those who embark on the tour can gain a firsthand appreciation for our traditions and how our people have lived while we continue working to protect these sites. Finally, I have ordered an entirely new section of our museum to be created documenting the truth about both civil wars. No longer will the facts be available only to a select few in the royal family. Soon, these truths will be released to the public for all to learn about. We must change in order to prevent these tragedies from taking place yet again. Please, I ask of you all, join me and let us go together into a peaceful and prosperous future!"

While her people applauded her, Rosalita looked up at the clear blue sky and thought to herself, _"Fernando, I hope I have made you happy, wherever you are. In some way or another, I intend to keep our promise."_

-:-

Later that afternoon, Rosalita managed to catch up with Matt at the train station before he boarded. Edrei and his subordinates, who traveled there with her, held back the sizable crowd that developed around her as she spoke with Sutter's grandson near the train.

"Must you really leave us without partaking in our festival?" Rosalita asked him with Shaymin sitting on her shoulder. "It is the customary celebration for when a new leader takes the throne. Security may be heightened due to the threat we received, but I intend to hold it as a way of guiding La Ciudad Dorada back to normalcy. I would be honored if you attended it."

"I'm sorry, Rosalita, I must refuse." Matt lowered the edge of his hat, casting a shadow over his uncovered eye. "Too much has happened here. I can't… I can't be here any longer right now."

"I understand. These last few days have certainly been difficult for us all," Rosalita expressed. It saddened her to look at how he bore both the physical scars of Fernando's campaign and internal wounds she could only imagine. _"He was dragged into this years ago, and it is finally over,"_ she wordlessly considered. _"I cannot place the emotional burden of being here on him given what Fernando did to his family…"_

"I should have never responded to Fernando's letter," he abruptly said, snapping her out of her thoughts. "If I never came here, you would still have your brother with you. It's thanks to my efforts that he found the Golden City and drank from the Fountain of Life… Eleanor would still be here, too. She would never have been caught up in this and never have been aboard that skyship…" Matt pounded his fist against his bag and took sudden notice of the blazing hot sun. It made him start to feel dizzy as he mentally replayed the circumstances of the skyship's destruction. "All of my own working with machines should have given me some knowledge to do _something_."

Matt's outburst caught Rosalita off-guard, and she initially didn't know how to answer it. "You cannot blame yourself for my brother's crimes," she finally said. Seizing his free left hand with both of her own, she assured him, "The only one to blame is Fernando, and as hard as this is for me to say, he has faced justice for what he did. That includes the decision Eleanor made to save us. He put her in that position, not you, and it was her choice to take the actions she did."

"Yeah, but…" Matt felt no further drive to dispute Rosalita's words, so he turned away from her instead. "I guess."

Seeing his clear unease, Rosalita decided to change the subject. "What shall you do now?"

"I'll be heading back to Lapidaria's capital, Amaranth City," he replied, growing only slightly more lively in his speech. "Amanda's there waiting for me, and we're going to be meeting up with our friends and their daughter soon."

"But Cassy is not going with you?" the new queen inquired.

"She said she had something she still wanted to do here," Matt offered with a shrug. "She'll probably want to participate in your festival herself, too. Regardless, she told me she'd catch up with me when she was done."

"Would you mind some other company on the ride?"

The new voice in the conversation belonged to Sheena, who had just arrived at the train station herself. Her existing amity with Rosalita got her through Edrei's blockade, and her presence brightened the queen's expression.

"I am glad you caught up with me, Sheena," Rosalita said. "Matt, I think it might be helpful for you if you aren't alone on your trip, as Sheena suggested."

"I suppose you're right." Matt turned to Sheena and questioned, "Why, though? Didn't you have your own plans for your trip here?"

"There's one way in and one way out of La Ciudad Dorada, so why should either of us head back to Amaranth City alone?" Even though she had answered his question with another question, Matt knew Sheena was right. "Besides, I still wish to speak to you regarding your grandfather's research into my people. There's a pretty long train ride ahead of us, perhaps it would be best if we didn't spend it thinking about what happened these last few days."

"When you're right, you're right," Matt admitted. Just then, he noticed something pinned to Sheena's coat. It was a red-and-gold military medal bearing the shape of a Gracidea beneath its ribbon. "What is that?"

"Oh, yes, I nearly forgot," Rosalita interjected, answering for Sheena. She produced a small box and handed it to Matt, who opened it to discover an identical medal. "This is the Gracidea Order, one of the greatest honors our family can bestow upon an individual. Matt, you earned this for your assistance in defending La Ciudad Dorada, just as Sheena did."

"Thank you, Rosalita…" was all he could say. With his coat slung over his right arm he couldn't put the medal on, so for the time being he closed the box and placed it into his bag.

"No, I should be thanking you. All of-" The sound of the train's whistle cut off what Rosalita was going to say, and she decided against repeating it. "Unfortunately, it would appear our time together is reaching its end. I want both of you to know you will always have second homes here. La Ciudad Dorada will always welcome you with open arms, whenever you feel like returning."

"I'll definitely come back one day," Sheena promised, placing her hand on her chest and bowing her head. "Until then, keep on being the best leader you can be for your people."

"I will make that promise with you," Rosalita affirmed.

"Until next time, then," Sheena said as she climbed aboard the train. "Matt, let's get going."

"Right. Rosalita, goodbye for now."

"I look forward to the day you visit once again!" Rosalita called after him.

Matt gave a short nod of acknowledgement to the queen's words, then boarded the train himself. Before he got fully up the stairs into the coach, he looked back over the platform and froze at what he saw.

There were two figures in the distance, far behind the crowd gathered to see Rosalita. He couldn't clearly make them out, but he could have sworn that they were Sutter and Eleanor. One had a long coat much like his grandfather's, and the other, a billowing skirt like Eleanor's. He was so taken aback by the sight that he rubbed his eyes, but when he blinked, they were gone.

 _"I guess that this is a chapter in my life that's closed now,"_ he mused, _"if I'm leaving Sutter behind here. I did complete his work… but I still should have been able to do something..."_

The train's whistle blared out across the station again, forcing Matt to stop gawking and get fully aboard before it pulled away. Rosalita waved after it, bidding her friends a final farewell until the day they would meet again.

-:-

Unbeknownst to Matt, Sheena, Rosalita or anyone else on the platform, the apparitions of Sutter and Eleanor were real. From their vantage point, Sutter watched the train to Amaranth City depart. Once it had left, he turned back to Eleanor and smiled at her, then both directed their attention to Fernando's liberated Dusknoir, who was there with them.

"I would say it's about time we get on our way as well," Matt's grandfather declared.

"Yes," Eleanor agreed.

Dusknoir grunted his assent and reached out to both Sutter and Eleanor, gripping the two phantoms in his broad, gray hands. He gradually drew the pair of spirits into his ghostly body before sinking into the earth, all in order to bring them to the other side.

-:-

Meanwhile, with Rosalita, Edrei and all the guards occupied elsewhere, Cassy traveled to the area of the city damaged by the clash with Regigigas at the wall. She carefully traversed the wrecked terrain, navigating over the broken chunks of stone, following something she was observing using her phone. Swellow was with her, but she was still wearing his bag herself.

After some time exploring the area, her phone started giving off a beep, signaling to her that what she sought was nearby. She hastily followed the direction the phone indicated to her, nearly slipping once or twice on the wreckage in her rush to reach the marked spot on its screen.

A large boulder was lying in the specified spot when she arrived, so she turned to Swellow and ordered him, "Break that with Steel Wing!"

Swellow chirped in compliance and smashed the stone with his metallic, glittering wings, turning it to rubble. Cassy waved away the resultant dust with her hand and reached into the newly-opened hole, retrieving what awaited underneath - the Griseous Orb, left behind when Dragonite smashed Fernando's staff aboard the skyship.

"Finally…" Cassy said in awe, her eyes widening and the orb shining in them. She placed it down for a moment and reached into her bag, taking out a perfect duplicate of the jewel that she swapped with the real one. With that done, she tapped the screen of her phone several times and brought it to her ear. "Mercury, it's Séduire," she addressed the person who answered her call. "Everything worked out exactly how Finansielle told us it would. I threatened them, and they ended up inviting me right in their front door. They never suspected a thing. Yeah, I've got the Griseous Orb." Pausing for a second, she slipped her bag back onto Swellow's body. "I'm sending Swellow to you with the real thing now, while I return the fake to them. Now that we've got this thing, Polaris is nearly done manipulating Team Galactic, right? Good. I can't wait to destroy Team Galactic for what they did to me."

With that, Cassy tapped the screen again, dismissing her call. The image of a double helix twisted into the letter 'P' briefly flashed on it before disappearing.

 **END of CHAPTER 9**


	11. Blossoming Hope (epilogue)

Here we are, the final portion of this story. This epilogue will be presented a little differently than the other chapters; instead of a full-fledged narrative, it will be made up of little scenes highlighting different characters and situations following the conclusion of the main plot. Only the last two scenes are full-fledged scenes and not the little ones I described.

There's some actual swearing at the end of this.

-:-

 **EPILOGUE:** Blossoming Hope

-:-

"Swellow, dodge it and use Aerial Ace!"

Cassy's Swellow just barely managed to somersault away from the Water Shurikens flung at him by the Greninja belonging to the young woman in the orange sun hat. His deft movements caused the crowds gathered in the Alliance Battle arena to erupt in a cacophony of cheering that only grew when he drove his beak straight into Greninja's chest.

The Alliance Battles were held every day in La Ciudad Dorada, but this one was different. It was just one part of the festival celebrating Rosalita's accession, and the new queen was there, watching from the balcony reserved for those of her station. Shaymin was at her side, eagerly devouring the cookies made in its image.

"Nice move, Miss Cassy!" Wally exclaimed to her. He and Laura were the other members of Cassy's team, backing Swellow with Gallade and Swampert respectively.

"I knew I was right about that Swellow," Laura added.

"Thanks," Cassy replied. With the Griseous Orb delivered to her superior hours earlier, the burden that had weighed on her from the moment she arrived in the city was gone. Her mind was at ease, so she had no problem relaxing and joining the festivities. "This is far from over, though," she said to Wally and Laura, warily eyeing their opponents.

Across the battlefield, Greninja recovered and stood alongside his own allies, Door's Audino and the witch's Decidueye.

"Guess I gotta pick up the slack," Door irritably sighed. She thrust her hand out and called to Audino, "Knives, hit Swellow with Charge Beam!"

The pink rabbit trilled and brought her hands together, forming a sparking ball of electricity between them. Before she could fully execute the attack, Decidueye stepped up next to her.

"Yes," hissed the witch, bringing her hand near her mouth. "You give Gallade a Spirit Shackle as well…"

While a ray of electricity burst from the sphere between Knives's paws, Decidueye slung one of his arrow-like quills and shot it at Gallade. Swampert, bearing a natural immunity to Charge Beam's voltage, lept in front of Swellow to absorb the shock. Swellow, in turn, intercepted Decidueye's Spirit Shackle before it could reach its target.

As all three Pokémon vocalized their thanks to each other, the crowd roared anew, both entertained by the action and heartened by the gratitude the Pokémon displayed.

-:-

Meanwhile, as the rest of her fellow tourists were enjoying the festival's opening, Kidd left La Ciudad Dorada behind. She drove into the desert in her sturdy yellow SUV, a vehicle that had served her well in her many exotic adventures. While Kidd was at the wheel, her two Weavile played in the back seat with one of the deactivated collars used by Fernando's army, which they'd collected following the battle of Dorada Market.

"So that's that, Banks," she said to the hologram of her superior being projected from the middle of the SUV's dashboard. He was an elderly, narrow-eyed man dressed in a dark suit with an oversized bow tie. "It doesn't seem like Gaia energy will help the foundation's goals on its own. It's too volatile, and only chosen ones may use its power."

"In the end, I suppose it's not a surprise," Banks replied. "Gaia has its uses, but it won't open up any avenues for us in driving humanity forward at this rate."

"I wouldn't be so quick to completely write it off," Kidd suggested. "I obtained a piece of technology built using the principles of Arcane Science. If we can understand the ins and outs of how Arcane Science works, it should advance the foundation's prosthetics development project."

"There's the fountain of great ideas at work!" the old man beamed. His enthusiasm earned him a sigh of exasperation from his employee, but he pressed on undeterred. "So, Kidd, what's the next stop on your tour of Lapidaria going to be?"

"I think I'm gonna hit the resorts in Amaranth City for a little while and relax," she answered, resting her right wrist on the steering wheel. "Once I've recharged my batteries, I'm thinking about heading off to explore the Lapidarian Highlands. There's still so much undocumented about them."

"That sounds like it'll make for quite the story!" For the second time in mere moments, Kidd had to sigh at her boss. She liked him, but knew well how tiring he could be. "When you go, make sure you get photos, videos, the works. The foundation will make a full-court multimedia push to get your accomplishments out there, Kidd! You'll be an inspiration to the public once again!"

"Don't you worry, Banks, I'll get what you want. I always do. Over and out." Kidd dismissed the hologram by pressing a button beneath it, causing Banks's image to flicker and fade away. Before she even had a chance to take her finger off the switch, a crash from the back of her truck made her jump. "You guys, be careful with that thing!" she called back at her two Weavile, who had dropped the collar on the floor while playing with it. "I know you're having fun, but please try not to destroy that. It's very important."

The Weavile duo looked at each other and pouted, then turned to their trainer and vocalized their contrition.

"It's alright," she assured them. "I promise we'll play all you want when we finish crossing this desert."

-:-

The festivities continued well past sunset that night, showing no sign of abating. Once the sun had left the sky, the Doradans replaced its light with a great bonfire in the market square. All around the towering pyre, many adult townspeople partook in the traditional dances of their home, while children ran around and played with toys made by Dorada Market's artisans. Many tourists, unfamiliar with such customs, snapped pictures and recorded video to memorialize the celebrations.

At the center of it all stood Rosalita. Closely accompanied by Edrei and a group of other guards, she was busy greeting the people she was responsible for leading. Before descending the Sacred Hill to meet with them, she had been nervous. It was the first time she was seeing them face-to-face after accessing the throne, so that feeling didn't surprise her. Yet once she was actually in the square and speaking with them, she felt right at home. Nothing had changed for her when it came to that.

Meanwhile, Edrei stood behind his queen, closely watching her every move. The years he'd spent alongside her, both when they were children and when they trained together, helped him become familiar with her quirks. That she would so closely associate with the people certainly struck him as odd, given the way her parents and the generations before them kept so strictly to themselves. As time passed and he observed her behavior more, he grew to understand she would always be someone who forged her own path in life even with the duties imposed upon her.

Getting to see Rosalita enjoying herself so much while also taking on the most important job in the entire kingdom warmed his heart, and there was no place Edrei would rather have been than at her side.

-:-

As soon as Matt and Sheena arrived at Amaranth City's train station, they headed straight for the hotel where he and Amanda were staying. It wasn't the most extravagant of the city's many resorts, but it still sat comfortably in the upper echelon of luxury.

Matt and Sheena split up when they got to the hotel. While he went to retrieve his sister, Sheena obtained a table in one of the resort's restaurants and waited for them. To pass the time, she ordered some tea. While sipping it, she glanced around at the lush, colorful floral arrangements set up throughout the restaurant.

 _"We're not in La Ciudad Dorada anymore,"_ she thought, _"but those flowers are beautiful enough to have come from there. Perhaps I should spend more time in Lapidaria and really get a look at what this region has to offer."_

"Sheena!" she heard Matt call out to her, snapping her from her reverie. "We're here!"

The priestess turned to see her friend approaching the table, pushing Amanda in her wheelchair while an Arcanine followed them. Matt had described his sister to her but wasn't until then that Sheena could truly appreciate Amanda's personality. Just at a glance she could perceive Amanda radiating serenity from how relaxed she looked.

"Hello," the blue-haired young woman greeted Sheena, waving in her general direction and flashing a peaceful smile. Amanda then folded her hands in her lap and said out loud, "Sheena, right? Matt told me a little about you on the way down."

"I certainly hope all of it was good," Sheena replied, setting her teacup down on its saucer.

"Sure was!" Amanda's smile broadened, leaving Sheena stunned by how disarming it was. Matt wheeled her up to the table, and while he sat down across from Sheena, Arcanine curled up at Amanda's side. "It sounds like you guys had quite an adventure. I can't wait to hear all about it… but first, Matt told me you had things you wanted to talk about?"

"Yes." Sheena paused for a sip of tea. As she lowered the cup from her lips, she noticed Amanda staring intently at her, having followed the direction of her voice. "I've been working to learn more about the history of my people, the Tenganists. I understand your grandfather spent considerable time researching us, so I wanted to find out what he discovered."

"The Tenganists…" Amanda repeated. Sheena couldn't tell how to interpret her flat tone, and Matt's blank expression didn't help at all. "Grandpa certainly did do a lot of research into them, I know that. The thing is, he was really touchy about the subject. He always got oddly serious whenever the Tenganists came up and tried to discourage us from asking questions. Honestly, it was a little scary."

Sheena's eyebrow twitched involuntarily, and before she knew it, she had the teacup at her lips again. The time it took for a sip gave her a chance to sort through her confusion. Once she thought through what she knew about Sutter, she realized another avenue of questioning. "What about his apprentice, Jacob? Did he know anything?"

"Probably," Matt answered while leaning on his clasped hands. "If there's one thing I knew about that guy, it was that he documented _everything_."

"That's right," Amanda agreed. She reached out to pet Arcanine, and he moved his head so it was under her hand. "He wrote extensively about the adventures he went on with Grandpa, and we got to read his journals."

"Most of them, anyway," Matt continued. "There was a period in the early '50s Sutter wouldn't let us read about, and the book disappeared by the next time I looked for it, like it never existed."

"The early 1950s?" Sheena exclaimed in surprise.

"You know something?" Amanda wondered.

"Not exactly," the priestess clarified, "but something is wrong. Your grandfather tried to discourage you from learning about the Tenganists and concealed details of his travels in the early 1950s from you. That timeline matches up with a forbidden tale from Tenganist history that even I know little about… something terrible happened in the early 1950s but knowledge of it has been suppressed. Now I wonder if your grandfather was involved in it, whatever that disaster was."

An uneasy silence settled in over the table. Matt, Amanda and Sheena all realized the magnitude of their potential connection, but none of them knew where to begin doing anything about it.

-:-

True to her word, Rosalita only made Noel and Leon stay a single night in the dungeon before releasing them. She allowed them to go about their day-to-day lives after that, although under strict observation from guards she assigned to them. The siblings chafed at their scrutiny, but kept their misgivings to themselves. They both considered it preferable to being imprisoned.

A few weeks passed before Rosalita summoned them to the palace. Fearful that they were about to be jailed again for something, they almost considered trying to flee but ultimately decided to place their hopes on Rosalita's plans for them. Much to their surprise, she kept her promise about giving them a comfortable enough life. True to her word, she informed them that she had found both housing and a legitimate job for them.

That was how Noel and Leon ended up at one of La Ciudad Dorada's iron forges. It was hard but honest work, and that was all either could have asked for.

Putting his muscular build to good use, Leon carried three newly-made pipes over his shoulder. He dropped them next to Noel, who was taking a break from welding various metal constructs together. She hadn't seen him coming, so the pipes crashing to the floor made her jump.

"Aah!" she shrieked. "Geez, Bro, you gotta sneak up on me like that?"

"Sorry, Sis," he apologized. "I was caught up thinkin' and didn't really pay attention."

"No sweat, Bro. What's on your mind?"

In a fit of irony given what Noel had said, Leon wiped sweat from his brow. Thanks to their years in the Orre desert, neither sibling thought much of the temperature in the forge, but it got to Leon in that moment.

"Ya think this is gonna fatten our wallets enough to give our old crew a hand?" he asked his sister. "I'm still worried about 'em, y'know?"

Noel chuckled. Before she answered, she brought a box of scrap metal over to her Muk, who was sitting a few feet away. The Poison-and-Dark-type Pokémon eagerly leapt at the container and began devouring its contents.

"That big heart of yours is what our crew loved 'bout you, Bro," she said, playfully slapping Leon on the back. "It might take a while, or it might not. Who knows? All I can say is, we'll go find as many of 'em as possible. I promise."

"You know, Sis…" Leon flashed a wry grin at Noel. "You like actin' tough, but you got a real heart in there, too."

Noel's face immediately turned red, and she grew flustered. "Wh-what're you t-talkin' 'bout, Bro?"

-:-

After retreating from Dorada Market, the Pokémon that Fernando had controlled fled La Ciudad Dorada altogether. Kommo-o led them across the desert and into the mountains. Their long trek ultimately brought them to the vicinity of the Golden City, where they took up residence in the nearby woods.

Upon their arrival, the native Pokémon were wary of Fernando's former troops. That fear didn't go unnoticed by the group of Pokémon, but they were at a loss for what to do about it. While under Fernando's control, they'd gone on such a rampage that none of them could blame the local Pokémon for staying away.

That reticence on the part of the natives left Kommo-o in a bind. Since he assumed leadership of the group, their well being was in his hands. Yet, he was just as exhausted from the battle and subsequent flight across the desert as his charges were. Even with help from Dragonite, who hadn't fought as much as the others, he'd never been able to recover enough to dedicate himself to aiding them.

Before long, the situation reached a breaking point. Kommo-o and Dragonite had just finished distributing berries they collected to the rest of the group when the former's body finally gave out. Kommo-o collapsed to the ground, and when Dragonite aided him in standing back up, they shared a grim glance. Both recognized the reality they were thrust into. If Kommo-o couldn't work any longer, that placed his duties squarely on Dragonite, and there was no way one Pokémon could pull it off alone.

Just as Dragonite started helping Kommo-o drag himself away, a noisy chattering from overhead caught their attention. The two dragons looked up to see three Swoobat descending toward them, each clutching masses of Revival Herbs in their claws. Two Sigilyph followed behind the Swoobat, using their psychic powers to carry a large pile of assorted berries. Kommo-o and Dragonite, realizing that the local Pokémon had come to provide much-needed assistance to their group, murmured in relief. For the first time since gaining their freedom, they were able to believe things would turn out okay.

Not far from where the Pokémon had made their camp, Regigigas sat peacefully upon its throne in the now-open Golden City. Kommo-o, Dragonite and the others didn't know that it had been watching over them instead of returning to a fully dormant state.

-:-

As weeks turned into months and La Ciudad Dorada settled back into its usual state of peace, construction commenced on the new museum exhibit Rosalita announced in her speech. She planned for it to feature several new works of art and writings to explain the truth of what had happened in the two civil wars. Creating such pieces would take the kingdom's artisans some time, so the area where the exhibit was to be built was cordoned off to allow basic preparations to begin.

There was one feature already set to be installed, however. It was the one Rosalita personally treasured the most - the golden statue that had once been Fernando. She had him placed in the museum right away, reasoning that that would be the place he would most want to be. Even though he would never be a part of the line of kings he had once so desired to join, Rosalita knew he would be happy simply getting to forever be within eyesight of them.

-:-

The Lapidarian Highlands were mountainous terrain far to the north of La Ciudad Dorada and the rest of the continent that stretched across the land, connecting its western and eastern coasts. Their vast scale, unforgiving landscape and frequent dense fog made them an area few ever visited and as a result, they had a reputation as one of the planet's last unexplored regions. Even Sutter, who had brought Lapidaria's other wonders to the attention of the world, barely explored them.

That isolation suited the wanderer just fine, having chosen a spot on a cliff deep in the mountains to make his home. He sat on one of the giant, glowing crystals lining the valley with Lucario and Golisopod, playing a melody on his flute while the two Pokémon moved back and forth with the tune.

Their peace was interrupted by the distant but distinct sound of a modern passenger jet flying far overhead. The wanderer stopped playing and turned his tired eyes toward the sky. Every time he thought he had finally managed to understand the technology of the time, something new appeared to baffle and amaze him all over again. That was just one of immortality's many curses, he frequently lamented, but airplanes held a special place in his mind. He had never been able to stop being awed by the idea of humans inventing machines to fly, even though his earliest exposure to such devices came as a child in Ransei so many centuries ago.

-:-

Even though Fernando VII and Sophia had hinted at Gaia holding the true secret to life after death, they never hinted to Rosalita or the others that what amounted to a whole other world awaited within it. That other world reflected reality like a mirror, so the Gaia version of Lapidaria had deserts, mountain ranges, jungles, and everything else its real-world counterpart possessed.

Once he understood those facts about the world he found himself in, Sutter set out to make the most of his afterlife. He traveled to the reflection of the Lapidarian Highlands, intending to correct one regret he still held and finally explore them. With a gnarled walking stick in his hand and a makeshift backpack slung across his shoulders, he made his way down a path into the deeper reaches of the Highlands' mountainous maze. Eventually, Sutter stopped and took out a compass.

"It would appear we're still heading north by northeast," he said out loud. Stowing the compass, he looked back over his shoulder and asked, "Bring me my map, would you?"

Eleanor emerged from the fog behind Sutter and ran to his side. "Sorry for losing you, Professor!" she apologized, bowing her head to him. "Let me just grab that for you…"

From her own bag, Eleanor produced a map and a pen, then handed both items over to Sutter. Matt's grandfather unrolled the map, which was covered with marks denoting where he and Eleanor had already traveled, and sketched out a further addition to the road they were following.

"It's gonna be a big job covering this entire region, Professor," Eleanor commented.

"That's why I've got a new assistant," Sutter replied. "One who already proved she's good at this kind of work."

Eleanor couldn't help but laugh and smile. "Can you at least let me carry the compass, Professor?" she jokingly asked him. "I didn't get a chance to build you the machines I wanted to before we left, so…"

"Alright, here you go." Much to Eleanor's surprise, Sutter tossed her the compass and stuffed the map and pen into his backpack. "Once we finish exploring the Lapidarian Highlands, we'll head back and you can build all the machines you want for our next expedition."

"You got it, chief!" Like she had done for Sutter's grandson in life, Eleanor greeted his promise with an enthusiastic salute.

With that, the explorer and the engineer set out together, once again heading into the fog of the lost world they wished to experience.

-:-

Like clockwork, the rainy season was upon La Ciudad Dorada once again. Rosalita had seen it so many times over her life that the storm raging outside her bedchamber window no longer bothered her. She felt more intimidated by the blank document sitting on her desk in front of her than by the torrential downpour, lightning and thunder.

"Writing speeches is one thing that never gets easier," she said to herself, tapping her quill pen on the desk. "I had so much I wanted to say that first time, but it is so tough normally..."

Rosalita turned around and looked across the room, past her plush canopy bed. Shaymin was there in the corner, sleeping on the Regigigas doll from her childhood. Eleanor's Persian, Rotom and Litwick were asleep around the doll, with her own Pokémon scattered around the rest of the room. Seeing them at rest made Rosalita smile, and she turned back to her task.

"Maybe I just need to get writing." She moved the document to the side and opened her desk drawer, retrieving a leather-bound diary that she opened to a blank page. As soon as she did this, something clicked in her mind and she immediately began writing. "It is hard to believe it has been six years already…" Rosalita narrated out loud as she wrote. "Maybe one day I will finally get up the nerve to put some of these thoughts in a letter and actually send it. For now, though… but, yes, it is already six years since my accession to the throne. La Ciudad Dorada has prospered so much since then, and my plan for revealing our history has worked perfectly. The response to the exhibit regarding the civil wars has been excellent, as has the expansion of the tour. There has been a great spike in interest in and engagement with our history from visitors, which led to new connections being forged between them and the Doradan people as they work together to learn new things. I think Fernando…" Even six years later, Rosalita had to pause and wipe away a tear. "I think Fernando would have been happy to see this. Doradan theater is seeing a renaissance as well, and he would love that. We are also forging new connections between La Ciudad Dorada itself and the outside world in general. Maybe he would not be so thrilled with that, but… I have to believe that by now, he would have come around to see the benefits. The Knights of the Golden City are doing an excellent job protecting our treasures, so he would have nothing to worry about. Do you remember when we were traveling together, how I said that La Ciudad Dorada did not even have a Pokémon Center? That has changed. There has even been talk of Lapidaria finally creating its own Pokémon League to accompany the Battle Frontier, and La Ciudad Dorada is in the running to host its conference tournament if it happens. I would suspect Amaranth City to be the front-runner, but La Ciudad Dorada has not yet been ruled out. Could you imagine if we won that right after all? The attention of the world would be upon us, and all could know the ways by which we live."

Rosalita closed her diary and placed her quill back in its inkwell. After a moment, she gently laughed to herself. "I guess I pretty much wrote my speech after all. It just needs a little cleaning up…" Leaning back in her chair, she gazed out her window at the storm raging beyond it and quietly added, "Matt, I wonder how you are doing? There is so much going on out there in the world at the moment… I will not presume to know everything about it, but I am aware of the conflict roiling many regions right now…"

-:-

Far away from La Ciudad Dorada and the humid shores of Lapidaria, the Kanto and Johto regions were firmly in winter's grip. A blizzard was raging across much of the border between the regions as well as Kanto's westernmost cities. Despite that snowstorm, a luxury train was traveling right through it, heading for the Indigo Plateau.

Matt was one of its passengers, accompanying his late friend's daughter on her way to participate in the Pokémon League that would be held there. She was riding in another cabin, but Matt wasn't alone in his. Sitting next to him at the table was a woman wearing a black trench coat, whose similarly-colored hair had red streaks in it and was so long it rivaled the length of Rosalita's. Matt's own appearance had changed since his adventure in La Ciudad Dorada; his injured left eye now covered by a golden mask.

"So that's it," Matt said to her. "That's the story of what happened in La Ciudad Dorada six years ago."

"You weren't kidding, that was one hell of a story," the woman remarked. Peering at him from behind her angular, rose-colored glasses, she asked, "So that's how you ended up having to become a robot, huh?"

Matt sighed. "I've told you plenty of times, Nekou, not a robot."

"C'mon, I'm just giving you a hard time. You know me well enough by now."

"Yeah, that's true. But anyway, to answer your question…" Matt raised up his arms, showing that both of them were now made of metal. "...that's only how the left one and the eye happened. The right arm and left leg, they happened shortly afterward, during the final battle with the remnants of Team Galactic."

"I know some of that story already, and I know you know that I know." Nekou winked at Matt and flashed a mischievous grin at him, but her expression soon darkened. "Even after looking at all of the files on you, though, I don't think I really appreciated just how f _u_ cked up your life has been. You've really been through more than one person deserves. I'm glad you're on my side, even with all the sh _i_ t I've pulled you into."

"It's not your fault," Matt said in an attempt to comfort her. "Besides, I'm the one who should be saying thanks for _you_ being on _my_ side. Seeing you living however you want has been giving me hope that maybe, one day, I can leave the past behind and finally be able to live freely, too."

"I guess breaking out of what others planned for us to do is something we share, huh?" Suddenly, Nekou started laughing. When Matt cocked his head at her, she added, "It's funny we said those things. That's what gratitude is, isn't it?"

Matt couldn't help but chuckle himself. "Yeah, you're right about that. If Shaymin was around, we'd be seeing flowers popping out of its back right about now."

 **THE END**


End file.
